Tag Force: Flight of the Obelisk
by Lushard
Summary: Asuka is on her way in finding her own path. Based on Asuka's heart events in YGO Tag Force 3. Asuka x Red Hat. Revised and Finished.
1. Your Own Path

**_A/N - 25th February 2013 : _**_I'm happy to announce that this fanfiction has finally been edited! __  
_

_This story is meant to be a fanfiction of Tag Force 3, which will be centered around Asuka and her 'Heart Events.' For those who haven't played the game, you can watch each event in Youtube or other media._

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**Chapter 1**

**Your Own Path**

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"You're alright?"

That question snapped Asuka off her own world. She quickly looked up to meet a pair of hazel eyes staring at her with a slight concern. She forced a smile at the red capped guy sitting before her.

"Don't worry, I'm fine," she replied. "I... I was just a bit dizzy, that's all. I guess the last assignment from Prof. Satyr really exhausted me these last two nights."

The red capped man nodded, his expression back to his usual facade of placid mask and composed look. "It really was a tiring one," he commented while sipping his coffee. "I never really understand what he wants; why does he always have to make us recompose our deck according to the theme he proposes. Sometimes I think he's just using us as guinea pigs."

"Well, that's him." Asuka smiled while forcing down a sigh.

The two fell into silence afterwards. Osamu, her partner, was not a type to strike a conversation without a bait _or _dangle in one long chit-chat if he could help it, so it didn't really bother her. But her mind was ringing a bell of alert: she had to speak with him. She had to speak with him about the real matter which had consumed all her energy and mind last night. It wasn't about the assignment, of course. It was their soon-to-be-graduation—which was coming fast.

She had thought of numerous possibilities in the future, and along with those thoughts, she had also wondered of what she really wanted to achieve in the upcoming years. Sure, the letter from Mr. Chancellor had really surprised her she wanted to scream in delight at the news. For Obelisk's sake how could she not? She was chosen to be an exchange student to an elite Duel Academy in a foreign land! The invitation was usually given to the best student of the year in the Academy, and there she was! How it would open the doors to many great chances and opportunities! Everyone knew that any duelist who was sent there would be promoted to a higher rank in the world of duels. Fame, money, knowledge and skills were to be expected running to anyone who received the blessing.

But Asuka hadn't rushed to the Chancellor's office to say yes to it. She had the urge to do so, but she restrained it. There were... things, that she should think over before making the big decision. One of those things, she realized, had to be talked over with her partner, the one who had accompanied her for these last, and may be the most fenomenal, three years.

So many things had happened in just a short amount of time. So many things she would never have dreamed of happening to her. The red capped guy, who always wore a placid mask and, sometimes, a teasing look, was someone she needed to talk to. She knew he held the answer she was seeking. Or rather, she hoped that he _could _bring some light to her confusion.

Three years of partnering and spending time with him had taught Asuka that outside looks never determined a person's inner side. A quick look on him would suggest that he was just a young man of his late teens with a calm demeanor and average skills in dueling. His red cap, which hid most of his short brown hair, added to the humble appearance of the tall young man. But when one really looked inside his deep hazel eyes, then everything would be different.

His eyes had this depth of someone who had been through the experience of life and death more than once. There were scars hidden in his gaze, and at the same time, there were this mysterious character of wisdom, honesty and also darkness which Asuka found not to be the kind that would shoo people off, but rather, draw them to him. It was kind of a calming darkness rather than a bottomless, frightening one. Experience, emotions and loss of precious comrades and idealism had made him the man he was now. And as much as it hurt Asuka to see him changed so drastically during a short period of time, she knew it also had shaped him to be a wiser and matured man then he had been previously.

Exhaling deeply, she began. "Osamu... I'd like to hear your opinion with something..."

Her companion looked up from his cup, his gaze was colored by bewilderment. He must have noticed a troubled look in her voice; three years of companionship had never failed him to recognize Asuka's mood so far. "What is it?"

"It's... It's not really an important matter, you see," she continued on, laughing bitterly. She was still unsure on how her partner would react to the news, much more to her plea of assurance. "Last week, a letter came and—"

The sudden entry of a group of Obelisk girls to the place interrupted her with their loud chatters and giggles. They were in the cafetaria in which Asuka and her partner had been enjoying their evening snacks after their afternoon classes. She paused in mid-sentence as some of them passed to greet her and threw an uneasy look at Osamu's presence. Well, not that she could blame them since the two made quite an odd couple in the first place: an Obelisk girl with a Silfer guy—sitting together in a public place.

Different uniforms aside, everyone knew that the only Silfers in the dorm were Judai Yuki and the red capped guy, and they both had the reputation of saving the dorm more than once, not to mention winning several tournaments that had been held there. So, it was out of the question to ask why an Obelisk duelist like Asuka would want to partner up with one of _the_ Silfers.

"Asuka-san," one of the girls greeted her when the group walked by their table. "And hey, Osamu-san," she added, turning to nod at Asuka's partner which was returned by only a silent approval of his head's inclination.

"Hello, Yukino," Asuka greeted back.

The girl with purple hair, whom Asuka had called by the name of Yukino, lingered. "Uhm... Asuka-san, do you... do you mind if we talked for a minute?"

Asuka raised an eyebrow. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Well, actually... I want you to help me with this deck," she said nervously, glancing from Asuka to Osamu. "And, of course, if it doesn't bother you—I don't want you to waste your time just because of me."

Asuka was a bit hesitant, but when she looked at Osamu, he gave her a nod and finally made up her mind to help the younger girl. The talk with Osamu could wait. Maybe... Just maybe, she would need a distraction. "Of course. I'd be glad to help," she replied while giving away a subtle smile.

Yukino was a year younger than her, and everyone knew how ambitious she was to win the next tournament which was especially held for the first and second year students. "I'll see you again tomorrow, Osamu," Asuka said while getting up from her seat. Before she headed off the room, she turned back to give him a look which said, _"We'll continue on it later,"_at which he once again nodded at.

* * *

~ xx 0 xx ~

* * *

Moon had risen when Asuka had finished with helping Yukino in composing a new deck. She'd found that it was a bit hard to concentrate on cards and dueling tactics when her body and mind were both exhausted and her thoughts were elsewhere. She was going to be sick, she assumed, by the lack of rest during these past two nights of doing the crazy assignment Prof. Satyr had given to the third-year students.

Walking back to the Obelisk Dorm located not so far from the Main Building, she stumbled against a dry root on the ground and almost lost her balance if her reflexes hadn't taken over to regain her footing. She gave an audible sigh, and when her head only became more and more dizzy afterwards. Never in her life she had been so stressed and exhausted at the same time more than when she had lost her brother.

Before she could manage to continue walking, a familiar, deep masculine, voice called out.

"Need a help, Miss?"

Asuka almost jumped when she spotted Osamu leaning over a tree just some feet from where she stood. The darkness which had engulfed the area plus the shadows from the woods and leaves had covered the young man for who knows how long he had been standing there. "You... What are you doing there?" asked Asuka, trying to walk limply to where he stood.

"Waiting for an irresponsible partner who has failed to keep her health," came the reply.

Asuka smiled weakly. Even in the darkness, she knew that he was throwing his usual mocking, playful smile on her. "And I never expected to have a partner who likes to stalk his female companion at night."

"Oh, don't worry, I didn't do it on purpose." He walked towards her and grabbed one of her arms lightly, balancing her steps and supporting her weight. Osamu had grown to surpass her height even more, she noted, judging from how easily he slipped on her arm. He was now a head taller than her, which showed just how much time had passed since their first meeting as freshemen. "I simply saw a pale young woman who was walking across a forest like a zombie and thought that she would collapse in any minute if her partner hadn't showed up for her."

They both laughed at his remark, then the two walked to where the Obelisk dorm was in a calming silence. She was thankful that Osamu knew when to be silent and give her a silent comfort and assurance. He had always been like that, at least for this past year: a silent companion whose simple gestures were always more encouraging rather than a cheer from a mass of people in podiums. She had always admired him for that: he never really needed words to communicate his thoughts and feelings to people, and she had never met anyone with such a gift.

Of course, he had been her opposite in every manner and character at the beginning, but as the time flew by, she had learned many things from their differences. She'd learned how to mature in character as he did, had learned how to treasure feelings and emotions by actions rather than words, and the most important of all, she'd learned that people could change, no matter how impossible it would seem.

Judai and Ryo were fine examples.

After what seemed to be ten minutes of walking, the gates to the dorm were in sight. The two stopped and Osamu's hand slipped off from Asuka's arm. "There," he said. "Rest well and don't push your body too hard: it also needs rest just as your mind needs it."

Asuka shot a tired smile, closing her eyes in disbelief. _Is my troubled mind a clear sight for him to see through, now?_

"Tomorrow's a day off, so you better take the chance to rest."

"I will. And, Osamu." She looked up to meet his gaze directly. "Do you think you shouldn't ask the Chancellor to promote you to be an Obelisk?"

At the mention of the subject, he gave away a tired sigh. "We've talked about this, Asuka. I don't really mind whatever rank they're giving me as long as I can duel properly."

"But it might be good for your career in the future!" she said, taking a small step foward. "Even if you're just promoted a day before graduation, it would help. People in this Academy may know of your dueling skills and deeds, but those who reside far from this island don't! If it's the Chancellor and the teachers, I can talk to them and—"

Osamu laughed, much to his partner's bewilderment and slight annoyance.

"I was being serrious here. What's so funny, now?"

"No, it's not what you think," said he between his laughter. "It was just... You don't understand how deep duelling connects people together." His laughter finally ceased. Asuka waited patiently for the capped man to elaborate. "We have discussed this together with the others when the Assassins attacked, haven't we? I think you've heard well what Judai said about how dueling deepens the bond between duelists and the cards' souls, but now I see you're not getting it at all."

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that you haven't grasped the concept fully," he said with a smile. Asuka was about to retort, but she held herself and waited instead. She hated it when Osamu pointed out her flaws like this, but knew better than to object. It would seem... childish.

"True, there are some people who only duel for money, fame or career," he continued, "but it's not what dueling is about. Maybe I will be judged by my rank quite often when I leave the Academy, but being well judged is not the point of being a high-ranked duelist. It is useless to hold a high rank without mastering the way of the cards. I don't want people to see me by my rank. Not me, not any duelist."

Asuka fell silent for a moment before she spoke again, "So, you're saying that you will prove who you are and what dueling is about your own way?"

"You could say so."

A talk between her, Judai and Fubuki was sparked in her mind. "I really can't understand you. What is it with you and Judai, taking such a great deal in dueling? Is it because you two can see the cards' spirits and we—normal people—cannot?"

Osamu's smile bloomed into a more tender one. "That's not it at all. True, there are some things that we learn from the spirits of the cards and by being held in their world for some time, but that's not how _every_duelist should learn. There are many paths to achieve that understanding, the understanding which points out who you are in this world of cards battle. And it's just a coincidence that he and I share a gift that brings us a bit faster to the point." When he saw how Asuka's face saddened by the remark, he added, "Your brother and Ryo also have understood this."

Tears were threatening to fall from her eyes, but she tried to hold them from spilling. When she spoke, her voice trembled in a way that she had not hoped it would show how confused and helpless she was. "I... I really am a child, aren't I? I _do_ love dueling and I sincerely believe that it _does_ bring people to understand each other... I also know what you, Judai and Nii-san have been talking about it, but still, I can't picture things in my head the way you guys do."

"You don't have to figure it in a way that we do," he replied calmly. "You're meant for a path of your own creation, for your own understanding and belief. Maybe you haven't found it, but it doesn't mean that it's not there for you. Keep seeking it in your own way."

When she didn't respond, Osamu placed a hand on her head. "Sometimes," he added in a playful tone, "you can be so childish."

"Hey, now you're going too far, Mr. Red Hat," she quickly replied while giving away a small laugh, her hand moving to push his hand off her head.

He avoided the movement and stepped back, laughing a little. "Well, a child always thinks too hard on her own and gets more confused thereafter, isn't it? Whoa—watch it." Asuka stumbled when she tried to counter Osamu with a playful punch, but luckily, he caught her left arm quick enough before she hit the ground.

"Rest now. I'll come over tomorrow afternoon. I bet you'll sleep like a log for, say, more than ten hours tonight."

Asuka stood up and nodded weakly. "Yeah, that I agree. You too, rest well." And before he let go of her arm, she pulled him over and gave him a small, weak hug. It was rather a sign of friendship and a gesture of thanking than a romantical one. Before letting him go, the Obelisk whispered softly to his ear: "Thank you."

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~ xx 0 xx ~

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**_A/N : _**_Trust me, I'd been longing to write this fiction eversince I played Tag Force 3 in PSP. Well, the OC, or the Red Hat Guy, in this fiction is a bit refined, considering that he had been through so many hardships in the GX Tag Force series. And as a result, his persona is somewhat a merge of his 'official defined' self from the GX series and the 5D's. (I've gathered the materials through playing the game first hand and noting every comment the in-game characters throw upon him)._

_Thank you for Reading! Do Review if you're interested! __  
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	2. Among the Paths

******_A/N :_**_This_ _chapter features Asuka's 2nd Heart Event._****

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**Chapter 2 **

**Among the Paths**

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It was 12.27 on her clock when Asuka found herself lying in her bed. The sun was already high, and its light was blocked by the curtains, a signal that she had clearly missed breakfast. Or even lunch. She didn't remember what had happened at first, but when she saw the calendar hanging on the wall against her bed, she quickly got up and took a shower while cursing her own idiocy.

Osamu was right: she had overslept due to exhaustion.

Quickly slipping into her usual attire of an Obelisk student—minus her gloves, since it was Sunday—Asuka raced to the gates of her dorm, only to find her partner leaning against the metal bars. His cap covered most of his face, but she could still see clearly that a playful smirk was playing across his lips when she approached him.

"Had a nice sleep?"

"I'm sorry I'm late," she breathed once she had reached him. "I forgot to turn my alarm on."

Osamu waved his hand casually while beckoning her to follow him. "I don't mind; you needed it anyway. Any plans for today?"

She thought for a moment then nodded. "Maybe we can go to the cafetaria first? I haven't had any breakfast." Stupid. How could she prioritize her stomach when their graduation duel was drawing near? She was quick to amend. "Then, we can go to the Duel Field to collect some points for more cards."

"Fine by me. And about yesterday's afternoon... Have you made up your mind to talk about it?"

She smiled. He must have guessed that she hadn't been ready to talk about whatever things that had bothered her, and so he waited up until now. That was very thoughtful of him, a trait that almost no one would expect out of his looks.

"I have. But it's not a matter of importance, so I figure it can wait until our graduation is over." _Right_, she thought, _whatever's bothering me should be just a concern to myself._ "You see, I don't want to distract our focus from the upcoming graduation test," she added lightly, forcing a smile.

"If you say so." Osamu shrugged.

They walked to the cafetaria which was already half empty by the time they'd arrived. Well, lunch time had already over for most of the students, and many were going to the Duel Field to train or simply lurking about in the other regions of the island to enjoy their day off. They discussed some possibilities with their respective decks while enjoying their meal, pointing out their analysis of each other's strategy and battle tactics.

After they had finished, Asuka suggested that they went to the Cliff for some training. It was quite a popular training ground beside the Duel Field, and it usually was not as crowded as it was in school days, which made it a perfect spot to train without attracting unnecessary attention.

Just when they were about to go off from the School Zone, two familiar figures clothed in Obelisk attire approached Asuka.

"Asuka-san, do you have a minute?" one of them called.

"Momoe and Junko?" Asuka recognized her two dormmates right away. They were amongst many Obelisk girls who always cheered for her whenever she dueled, and it was them too who had always asked Asuka for advice for their decks and tactics, and much too often, also of her brother. It could be said that they were some sort of Fubuki's fangirls in the Academy, to which Asuka hadn't stopped pondering on how her stupid brother could draw these so called 'fans' to him in the first place.

"What is it?"

"Are you two going somewhere?" Momoe, the black-haired one, asked, as if as she had just realized that Osamu was there.

"Yes," Asuka replied, " we are about to go to the Cliff for some training. Are you to going to train, too?"

This time, Junko spoke up. "Of course! But we actually have a special menu today, if you approved of it."

Asuka raised an eyebrow to her friend's suspicious smile. "'Approve'? What does your training have to do with me?"

"It means," Osamu cut in, "they want to duel you."

She blinked. "Do you? What is it all of a sudden?"

"Well, you see, we want to duel you at least once before we all graduate," Momoe explained blatantly. "There were not so much of a chance going against you in a duel eversince our last semester started, so we figure that now would be a best time to ask you for a last duel before we all separate our ways."

Asuka flinched a bit at Momoe's last words, but still nodded in understanding. "So, is it a Tag Duel then?"

Momoe and Junko glanced at each other, looking unsure all of a sudden. "Um, actually, we were planning on asking you to duel us one on one," the brown haired girl said. "We can take turn against you and see how much we have improved during all these three years. That _was_ the plan."

"But why don't we just Tag Duel?" she pressed in. "It'd be much more convenient since there are four of us."

"But he's a Silfer!" Junko argued.

When Asuka was about to object, Momoe cut in to explain her friend's brash wordings. "It's not that we doubt his skills or anything, but if it's a last duel with you before we graduate, we want it to be fair and square: Obelisk against Obelisk." Junko nodded at her her friend's words, while Osamu simply shrugged his reply while Asuka darted her eyes to him from the challangers.

She was unsure on how to handle things, but before she could speak, Osamu said, "I don't mind being a watcher. We can still train afterwards. There's plenty of time before the sun sets."

This again. A few mentions of his different uniform and his casual replies...

"No," she said without looking at him. Her tone was firm, leaving no room for arguments. "I won't take you gals on a duel unless it's a Tag Duel."

Junko hesitated. "But he's—"

"As I said, my decision is firm. It's a Tag Duel or not at all."

At that, even Osamu's eyes widened. "Hey, are you sure? They want to duel you, not me—"

"You're my partner," she interrupted sharply in a low voice. "We duel together unless you don't feel like one."

Alhtough Asuka was still smiling, the three knew that it was not a gesture of assurance. One should never mess up with her mood, people who had dueled her said once. There was a pause: the two girls were exchanging a worried glance before finally nodded in defeat. "Fine, then" Junko huffed. "It will be a Tag Duel. Now, let's get it on!"

For Duel Disks activated in a symphony. "Duel!"

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~ xx 0 xx ~

* * *

"Trap Card: Mirror Force!" said Osamu while activating his downfaced card.

Momoe attempted to negate his trap by activating one of her monster's effect, but before its effect could snatch the momentum, Osamu played yet a quick-spell to counter it. Within mere seconds, harpies on the field were destroyed and sent to Graveyard, a move which made Junko yelled out in annoyance and anger.

It had been quite a while since Asuka and Osamu had Tag Dueled together. The last time they had done it was a month ago, during Sunday Tag. The last period of their semester was closing in fast: the Academy was more focused on their individual performance on tests and duels rather than their Tag Dueling skills, so it was to be expected that each of them had trained on their own during the past weeks.

That was, until the Chancellor announced the term of their soon-to-be-graduation-test that students should pair up with partner of their choice for the last time, something that annoyed people who had long targeted Asuka to be their partner. She, on the other hand, mistook not of his abilities: Osamu was a great duelist and also an adept tactician. He changed his dueling style often, switching elements and types of monsters in almost every duel, which undoubtedly confused many of his opponents as he pulled his tricks by moving silently within the Trap Zone.

And this time, he played a Red-Eyes deck which he had learned to construct on his own after his battle against Fubuki's dark persona several months ago.

Almost all the slots on field had been occupied by the time Osamu activated his trap card. They had been dueling for a full twenty minutes beforehand. Asuka was playing along with Osamu's strategy on reviving Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon on their sixth turn after setting up some Cyber monsters, but soon they were pressed against the wall by some of their opponents' spell cards which decreased their attacking monsters down to zero, forcing them to once again switch the high levelled Red-Eyes into a defense position.

She noted how troublesome the two girls' spell cards and average monsters could be after their highest level monster on field was locked down. Osamu had countered some of them using Dark Bribe and fortunately, negating a disastrous effect during their defensive period.

But after some rounds of defending their field and LP, Osamu's strategy finally kicked in: it appeared that he had set Mirror Force from the very beginning, and Asuka knew that he meant it for a tough time—a time when their opponents felt like they finally broke through their defenses and assaulted with a handful of monsters. Their speculation had been right; the two Obelisk girls were soon gathering up four monsters on field after eliminating Asuka and Osamu's reamaining monsters except for the locked down Red-Eyes.

And it was the chance that he appearantly had been waiting for.

All of their attacking monsters were now long gone, leaving only a 4-star level harpy on a precautious defense mode.

"Heh, so what," Junko spat, forcing a sneer. "You and us still have a defense here, and we will break through yours with our next phrase!"

"Unfortunately, I don't plan on letting you advance to the next phrase," replied the capped duelist. Asuka smiled inwardly at the remark. She could guess her partner's next move.

"What—don't mock us, Silfer!" beamed the high-tempered Obelisk.

"Junko," Asuka said simply, "don't you see how we have been waiting for all these rounds? It was not the field monsters that we were gathering up."

"Now, activate from my hand," Osamu interjected, "Dragon Mirror!"

Three cards from Graveyard and two from Osamu's hand were fusing together, creating then a giant, malicious monster feared as F.G.D, a dragon with ferocious 5,000 attack point. Junko and Momoe gasped in disbelief as they saw a monster possibly only would have showed itself during a high-ranked championship duel digging its clawed feet to the ground.

But an attacking F.G.D wasn't enough to deplete their LP, and so, Osamu activated his Red-Eyes' effect to revive one remaining Wyvern from his Graveyard.

_It's complete, then_, Asuka thought while smiling to herself. She had willingly played in the back as a supporter for Osamu's patient tactics until this very turn, and now it finally bore the fruit they had been waiting for.

One remaining card from Osamu's hand then got activated, sealing all of both Trap Zones, ensuring that the last two cards facing down on their Trap Zone were not going to interfere with his last attack. And with the Wyvern and F.G.D's powerful combo, the duel finally ended.

"Whoah!" Junko screamed as the impact from F.G.D's attack pushed her and her partner a few steps back. "I can't believe it... We lost! To a Silfer!"

Momoe, who was quicker to regain her balance and composure, added after seing the two champions, "Yeah, a Silfer with an _F.G.D_, you mean. And also to be noted, a Silfer teamed up with _Asuka-san_."

"Indeed," said she while getting up on her feet with her friend's help.

Asuka, already deactivating her Duel Disk, walked to where they stood and offerd a hand. "Nice duel, you two."

Osamu followed suit, and his was returned with hesitation by the two. Noticing their reluctant gaze and uncomfortable body languages around him, Osamu glanced at Asuka and said, "I'll go and see if I can gather up some spare cards for our _evening _training session."

Asuka smiled to show her gratitude for being able to talk in private with her friends, in which Junko and Momoe were also took a part in. He nodded to them both and left the main ground, going to the direction of his own dorm.

"I—eh, _we_ apologize, Asuka-san," said Junko anxiously upon the brown haired Silfer's leave. "I guess he really _is _a duelist of your own choosing and caliber."

"Yeah," said Momoe, "even I've never seen an Obelisk summoning the legendary F.G.D before, spare for those who have been sent abroad for some world championship events."

"He is," said Asuka as she watched his back dissapearing from sight. She turned to them and shrugged. "So, satisfied with our 'last' duel?"

Junko grinned. "I had been rather optimistic there for a second, y'know... But I guess beating you is close to impossible."

"I won't label it as 'impossible'," she gave a wry laugh, "but you know you're more than welcomed to try another time."

"Actually, we wanted to tell you something," Momoe began. "Well, we've made up our minds that we are to be kindergarden teachers!"

Now this was unexpected. "Teachers?" Asuka blinked. "Why the profession?"

"You see, we both like children," explained Junko, "and we want to nurture them to be great duelists someday. Have you ever heard that 'behind every successful duelist resides great teachers'—well, I guess not, since _I_ was the one who made it up—but that's what we after: We want to instill the joy of dueling even before they go and study here."

"I see. But I think it suits you two," she added, smiling broadly. She knew how they were easily amongst people who had bright and friendy nature, and she was sure that they would suit the profession perfectly.

Momoe nodded. "Yup. And that's why we hoped to create memories here for the last time before graduation. Say, what will _you _do, Asuka-san? Have you any plans for your future?"

Crap. She'd forgotten all about it because of their duel. "I—uh—"

"Momoe, you fool!" Junko cut in. "Everyone knows how skillful Asuka-san is, and she surely has a bright future and, who knows, maybe hundreds of _invitations_, waiting for her! You talk as if she's some laid-back student who has no direction in life!"

"Umm, it's fine, really," Asuka quickly tried to calm Junko, who was glaring at her less impulsive friend. "I was not offended in any means, and she was just asking. It was just..." she trailed off, her eyes dismissively moved to the path leading to where her companion had just left. "I mean, I have thought about it, but I guess I haven't really made up my mind, that's all."

"You must be really confused with all of golden opportunities demanding your answer, huh?" Momoe said apologetically. "But, well, we've gotten what we wanted, now. Say, would you mind going with us for some training for graduation test?"

"No, I'm sorry, I've promised him that we'd be training together for the day."

"Ah, it's fine, Asuka-san," Junko quickly said. "It was a nice duel, and thank you for accepting our blatant challange."

Asuka nodded and they parted their ways. "Give my regards to the Silfer," shouted Momoe with a wink while they were walking away.

Walking slowly in a darkened mood, Asuka made a way to the Silfer dorm, heavy clouds hanging over her mind. _Future, huh_, she mused darkly. She knew what she wanted, was sure what she should do, but still... She couldn't help but feeling uneasy whenever her thought was brought back to Osamu. How should she start it? What would his reactions be if he learned that she was going to leave?

Was he even concerned of her in the first place? Or was she only troubling herself over her own senselesness?

After walking a few minutes, she could finally spotted a familiar figure sitting under the shades of a tree with cards scattered around him. The capped young man noticed her presence right away and looked up, meeting her gaze and made a gesture of acknowledgement with a slight inclination of his head.

Asuka smiled almost bitterly at herself. _Future and him. Why should the two be such a riddle?_


	3. Starting Over

**Chapter 3 **

**Starting Over**

* * *

Osamu was walking towards his dorm when Edo Phoenix called him out. The sun was about to set when their duel had finished, and he was about to call it a day, leaving Asuka and Jun alone at the Cliff for a private talk—since the brash Obelisk had chosen to confess his feelings to Asuka the minute he'd lost against her and Osamu. Well, it was not the first time, actually: Osamu had quite used to leaving his partner for a private talk with whoever was brave enough to ask her for a date. He didn't want to bother her of put his nose into her private life, plus he was sure she could make such decision without him.

"Wait, Osamu-san," Edo called as he ran after him.

Osamu turned to see the silver haired duelist and shrugged. "What is it? Aren't you going back to your own dorm?"

"Yeah," he said as he took a breath, "but, I'm really not in the mood to call it a day just yet. Not after being beaten by you."

It was true that Asuka and Osamu had won the Tag Duel, but he wouldn't call it a victory. Edo and Jun still had to work on their teamwork, that much was obvious, but even so they had pulled out some tricks to tackle Osamu's traps and halt Asuka's advance more than one occassion. It had been Edo's quick-witted play that had saved them time, which in turn only lasted a few minutes before Osamu managed to see through his tactics.

The capped young man smiled wryly. "And asking some company from the one you've just lost to is going to fix your mood? Some duelist you are, Phoenix."

"Heh, 'thought so. Anyways, it wasn't me who began all of this; it was all Jun's idea. I was actually going to be made a witness of the duel, not to participate in it."

But as the events'd turned out, Asuka had refused the challange were it not made a Tag Duel. And god knows that Jun could never say no to her. Osamu chuckled at the reminiscence. He gestured Edo to follow him and the two walked to a nearby coastline near to where they were. "I know. So, what will you be doing after graduation?"

"I plan to go abroad and join some tournaments," replied Edo. "Some companies have already contacted me, and I'm still confused on whom to turn to. What about you? Will you be going somewhere with Asuka-san? I heard she's been invited by many major companies."

"She has?"

"You don't know?"

Osamu shook his head, his expression fell blank. "She didn't tell me about it. Well, she has never talked to me about what she's going to do or what she wants, and I never ask. It is plainly none of my business."

Edo frowned at his reply, perhaps measuring his words with care before saying it out loud. "Do you know that you two lead such a weird relationship?" he asked carefully.

He knew. More than one person had stated out so, but he didn't drop it nontheless. "Why do you think so?"

The slightly shorter man opened up his mouth to say something but closed it again on a second thought, sighing instead. "No, forget it. I'm not in a position to criticize your relationship with your dueling partner." He was implying to _his _own hardships with Jun. "Well, then do you have any plan after graduation? A duelist of your caliber should be flooded by invitations, I presume."

"I have received some," he admitted. "But I don't really want to make up my mind just yet. There are... things I'd like to ponder... Things I'd like to settle before making any decisions for my future."

"I see. I won't ask of what matter, then, but the graduation is coming up ahead, you know. Don't you think it's better to settle those things now?"

Osamu slowly nodded, contemplating. "Yeah... I guess so. Heh... I wish I could be like Judai for once."

Edo laughed. "Yeah, it is good to be like him sometimes, but you're just you, aint' it? In the end, we all play a different part in this life, and I'm glad I could finish mine in this academy."

"Now you're sounding like Ryo."

"Am I? Ah, Asuka-san," Edo turned to greet the young woman.

She was half-running to where they stood, and panted when she arrived. "Sorry... I took so long..."

Edo casted a glance at Osamu and nodded his farewell. "Well, I'll be taking my leave now. Bye then, both of you."

When the two were left alone, Osamu spoke up, "Why are you here? Isn't it past six already?"

"I... I just... I just want to talk," she managed to finish her sentence. Her face was flustered and Osamu could only guess that it was the result of her talk with Jun. She straightened up a bit. "I... rejected him."

Osamu tilted his head to one side, bewildered by her sudden confession. "And?"

"I just want you to know, that's all."

* * *

~ xx 0 xx ~

* * *

Asuka looked away, avoiding his gaze. "I thought I should tell you. I don't want my private matters to bother our performance as a team."

Despite his cap that was covering most of his expression, she could easily spotted his furrowed eyebrows. They had rarely talked about their personal matters or thoughts before; all the years spent was only a workout in terms of dueling strategies, tactics; common discussions and casual exchange of gratitude. They were though, quite close as friends, maybe he was even the closest person to her besides Ryo and Judai, and she had found that there were thing she could only discuss with him rather than the two men.

But something had... changed. Their relationship had flattened eversince the incident that had pulled him to another dimension along with her other friends.

After their return and the third year had begun, Asuka had noticed that Osamu had grown nowhere but becoming more and more distant. Well, he was not loud to begin with, but he was far more silent than he'd used to be. Judai had grown somewhat quieter too, and so had Ryo. Everyone close to her seemed to change after the incident, but Osamu was the hardest one to read. His playful remarks and comments were still there, but his eyes were almost as if they had been torn of whatever energy and life they had contained before.

And it was, partially, her fault. She hadn't been there with him. She hadn't helped him.

And she'd been scared of what would become of him. Scared that someday, he too would turn to be like Fubuki's dark persona—a form taken over by malice and darkness. (A bitter reminder: She hadn't done anything to prevent _that_ from happening).

"I'm sorry," she breathed. Before Osamu could manage to question her words, she continued, "I have been very selfish, I know. I shouldn't be bothering you with my personal affairs, yet I do feel like I've been running away from you all this time. I couldn't help but feeling anxious after all that had happened to you, Judai and the others." She dropped her gaze low. "I... am a coward, aren't I?"

There was a pause. Lifting one eyebrow, Osamu waited. "What brings this up?" asked he in a low voice.

Asuka hesitated. "When Jun told me of how he feels about me, I felt... that I have not been very honest with myself. I have been concealing my own feelings, and the strongest feeling that remained inside of me is regret. I regret that I've not been able to be any help for you, Ryo or Judai. Nii-san doesn't even want to speak to me of what happened _there_ no matter how I demanded him to. And I'm too much of a coward to ask you directly..."

Silence stretched for a moment. Asuka thought that he was going to drop the matter, but then he spoke. "People change, Asuka." He took off his cap, letting the evening breeze send his dark brown hair astray. His eyes gleamed in a way that reminded her that he was no longer the Osamu she'd used to know.

"If you are concerned of what had happened to me and the others, you're wasting your time," he said. "I don't know how Judai and Ryo had managed to get through their trials, but each of us did it our own way. As for me, I'm still hesitant to even let go of this... feeling of emptyness inside. Eversince I arrived back to this realm, the shadow of my own darkness which emerged in the other dimension kept on haunting me. But it is not torture he presents me with; it was my own reflection."

Judai had reluctantly talked about this kind of thing before. She knew not to press the matter when she was not wanted to, but this time, she didn't bulge. "What do you see, then?"

Osamu gave a bitter laugh and shook his head. "My own madnes. My own darkness. Myself. His voice is my voice, his eyes also represnt mine; and that's why I'm hesitating. Whenever I'm confronted against him, the voices of the cards grow fainter and fainter. I am wondering if making contact with the darkness has dispelled my abilities to hear the whisper of their souls." A bitter, crooked smile settled on his lips. "And thus, I am afraid. I am afraid that all I've known and heard are nothing but mere illusions; a fog of lies created by my own dakness."

Asuka had heard of this. People who came back from the other dimension were not supposed to be in their healthiest and finest condition: it was the exact opposite. She didn't dare to imagine what kind of malice that had encountered them there, but she knew it brought about many changes she didn't want to see in their dearest ones.

"Is that what's bothering you?"

"Not entirely, but yes, I still question myself so until now. And—what are you—?"

She held out one of his hands and placed it on her cheek. "You're saying that all of what's been happening is not real? Then why are you here—breathing, living, in front of my very existence? Are you saying that I, too, am a shadow created by the darkness?"

"No, that's not what I mean... It's just that I—"

"Then, quit it," she cut him in, her grip tightening on his hand, pressing he calloused hand of his harder on her cheek. Her voice was neither loud or harsh; it was soft, almost like a pleading whisper, yet with some amount of power and sharpness in it. "Quit doubting your own ideals and reality, Osamu. You _live_ in the present: I can feel you as you are now. Should you doubt on who you are now, then I will certainly be there to remind you of who you are, dueling you if necessary. But if you doubt your past and your own memories, there is nothing anyone could do to reach out to you."

She barely could see through him, but she noticed how his confused, hollow gaze had deflated as understanding sank into him. Seconds passed by. Asuka withdrew her hand. "I apologize if my action seems too brash and selfish," she said, "but I've seen enough: I don't want more of my friends be lost to the darkness anymore."

She was trying to look away after realizing how much emotion had flooded onto her face when she was finally aware that Osamu's hand was still on her cheek. She looked up to him and found him staring still at her.

"I'm the one who should apologize." He sighed tiredly. "I was so caught up in my own world and confusion I totally forgot about those around me. I know I'm not the only one who's suffering, but I chose to cast a blind eye at others, prefering to settle things on my own." His voice grew fainter, as if he was muttering to himself, and a tear escaped. "...Even though I'm fully aware how powerless I am."

Taken aback by how such a strong, calm and collected person could shed a tear in the presence of others, Asuka stayed mute, unsure of what to say. It was the first time she had seen him so... so full of emotions, free of his mask of facade coldness that didn't let anyone see through the walls. He was still silent and his eyes were not even looking at her; he was even unaware of the single drop of tear that had just fallen down to the ground.

His hand fell to his side. "I wasn't able to save anyone," he continued darkly, "and that should already taught me of how weak I am and how futile it is to stay in the darkness. Yet I cling to it: simply because I was, and am too afraid to see what's in the light."

She had also been like that. Though for her, it had been between the grief of losing her brother, the bitterness of being left behind and the urge to get stronger.

"I might be not in a position to say this," she chose her words with care, slightly uncomfortable from the fact that she had failed to see through own partner upn until now. "But, you don't have to face it all alone. I don't know the details of events in the other dimension, but I, too, have tasted the bitterness of losing people and things that are precious to me. It's true that there are times when I have fo stand up for all by myself, but whenever I'm troubled and feel lost, I always look for you and the others for support—even when they don't know the state I am in."

At that, Osamu smiled wryly, his gaze averted to the ground. "I'm not as strong as you, Asuka. I never was, and never am." His companion was about to open her mouth in protest, but Osamu cut it by saying, "Thank you, though. I really appreciate it." His smile broadened a bit before completely dissapearing. "I am glad I get to partner up with you for the graduation duel."

"No—the pleasure's all mine." She quickly suppressed the heat that escalated, knowing full well blushing in such an occassion is more than foolish, not to mention embarassing. "Just... You don't have to hide it anymore."

"Well, then," he concluded in a lighter tone, "what do you say we start over?"

Asuka simply stared at Osamu's hand that was offered to her.

"We'll start over things, you and I, for the last time in this academy," he explained after reading Asuka's face. His lips curved to form a subtle, yet reassuring smile—a genuine expression Asuka had never seen for months. "And this time, I'll be trusting my back to you completely." He paused before saying, "Partners."

Nodding in understanding, she accepted the handshake. "Partners."

They withdrew their hand, realizing that the sun had already set. "You'd best be going now if you don't want to skip dinner," Osamu said playfully. His face and voice were calmer now, and Asuka could sense something that reminded her of his lost warm persona that had been burried within him after he'd gone to the other dimension. "And this." He placed his red hat atop Asuka's head, making the Obelisk gasped by the sudden move and his hand's weight upon her.

Giggling, she jerked her head backward. "Hey, are you sure? You're giving this to me?"

"What, you prefer food?"

They both laughed. When it ceased, Asuka offered a thankful smile and took the hat off and held it in both hands with care. "I will treasure it."

"Please do."

When they were about to part ways, Osamu grabbed Asuka's shoulder and pulled her closer and slipped one hand onto her waist, hugging her from behind. "Thank you," he whispered through her hair, his breath radiated onto her exposed skin on the side of her neck.

After he was gone to his own dorm, Asuka finally let out the breath she'd been holding since he'd hugged her.

_That was... unneccessary. _Though despite her mind ringing so, her lips quirked upwards in a bashful smile. It was the first time he'd done such a thing, with affection, to be noted. Asuka looked at the hat on his hand.

And as for her, she finally felt, for the first time, she'd done something right.

* * *

~ xx 0 xx ~

* * *

**_A/N : _**_ Ahem. Well, the story's proceeding into a deeper level now. I do hope I can bring about some truth about the Red Hat. And I follow the story as it is in YGO TF 3, when the protagonist is said to have visited the Other Dimension and faced Ha'ou (Dark Judai)._

_Read and Review if you're interested. Your reviews are my source of energy and motivation._


	4. Lingering Scent

**Chapter 4**

**Lingering Scent**

* * *

Asuka had finished her dinner early tonight. Despitebeing told to rest as soon as she had done dining by the dorm leader, she found herself unable to let her mind rest eventhough her body was already laying on her bed. But that was to be expected: tomorrow was the last duel examination upon her graduation. She had wondered who she might be facing.

Getting up from her bed, she sighed in annoyance as she changed into her usual Obelisk sleeveless uniform. She had wasted her time trying to sleep when she knew she would never succumb to the realm of dream anytime soon. She checked a clock sitting on the desk and wondered if she could sneak past through the patrolling dorm leader to get some fresh air outside. It was almost past ten, so she decided to gamble on the chance.

Creaking her door open as soft as she could, she walked hurriedly through the dark hallway, stopping every now and then to make sure that she was not followed or busted yet. After some minutes of jogging, she finally made it to the front gates. All that was left is to climb up the wall and jump outside. She hesitated for a moment, measuring the wall's height which was almost seven feet tall.

But when she was about to search for another means of escape, a whistle caught her attention. She turned round to search for its source and found...

_Him._

Shocked, Asuka simply stared at the young Silfer who was standing behind the gates. He was practically hidden by the shadows and bushes nearby, but her eyes couldn't be mistaken: it was clearly Osamu. She saw him almost every day and thus, wouldn't mistake even his shilouette for someone else. Another whistle was heard, and the figure got closer to the gate and gestured her to climb up the wall. _"I'll help," _was his silent message.

Asuka quickly searched for something to be used as a higher footstool for an easier climb, and found a tree with sturdy branches that were not higher than the wall. She rushed to the tree and climbed it carefully. Osamu appeared on the other side of the wall just when she finally able to get on top of the wall. He held out one hand, and Asuka used it to balance herself when jumping down.

"Why are you here?" she breathed once she was outside of the wall.

Osamu shrugged. "I figured out that you'd be bored."

She gave his arm a playful punch. "Hey, is my mood that clear for you to read?"

"Nah, just some hunches of a bored person, that's all. But first, let's be off to some place where there aren't any dorm securities nearby."

"What about the Cliff?"

"Not a bad idea," he agreed.

They jogged silently westward, choosing a more smaller path in the woods rather than the main road. No one would want to be caught trespassing the dorm's night hour just a day before their graduation.

After they were farther away from the dorm, they slowed down their pace and walked instead. Osamu was taller than Asuka, so she should still attempt to walk a bit faster than she usually did.

"So, what brings you here?" she asked once again.

"Like I said, I noticed that you were strangely quiet over last class, and I thought I'd pay a visit."

She chuckled, telling herself non-audibly that this was Osamu she was dealing with. As far as she knew, he was always like this: popped up in a timing she could never thought of before.

"I'm just a bit... nervous, I guess," she admitted, her eyes darted to the vast landscape before them.

The Cliff was a short walk to where they were, so they shouldn't worry of being caught by some roaming patrols on duty. And even if there were any, they could easily find some rocks tall and wide enought to hide them from their view.

"I'm just amazed that everything I've worked for in three years is finally going to an end. School's life, Sunday tag duels, Professor Satyr's crazy assignments... all of them are going to end tomorrow."

"Surely what awaits you in the future is not going to be less exciting than what's there for you in this little island," commented Osamu.

"Yes, I know. But still, I still can't believe that it has been three years since I first stepped into this academy. So many things have happened."

"_Too _many," he corrected with a subtle smile devoid of sarcasm.

Asuka studied his face in the dim light for a while before cautiously saying, "It is true that there _are_many things I have not whished for that happened in these last three years. Yet, there are still memories and lessons I wish to treasure for all my days. But in the end, I'm glad I enrolled here," she added with a smile.

When the still night was broken by the sound of waves crashing into the rocks, Asuka sped up and stood on the edge of the cliff. She closed her eyes and let the breeze soothe her soul, breathing deeply to fill her lungs with fresh air mingled with the faint taste of salt. "I have always wanted to visit this place at night," she murmured in astonishment.

"You can always do that before dinner," Osamu suggested.

She gave a short laugh. "No. I mean, alone." She glanced back at Osamu, who was eyeing her, and smiled at his raised eyebrows. "You're an exception, I guess," she replied, laughing again.

"Although if you do want to be alone, I wouldn't mind going back now," he said, half seriously.

The Obelisk shook her head in glee, amazed at how her companion still able to crack jokes when they were only one day to the graduation. "No. Do stay, please."

Walking past her, Osamu leapt to a lower level. "Let's get down there."

Asuka nodded and followed suit. If they were just to stand idly on the edge of the highest ground, she knew they'd be easy to spot by passing securities. Leaping carefully, she made it to the lowest level to where Osamu stood.

Tonight was a full moon, so she could see him clearly there. But one thing she hadn't realized before that she was not used to look at him without his red cap on. Seeing his short, chesnut hair sent astray by the wind and shone under the pale moonlight... Well, he almost looked foreign to her now.

"You're anxious," observed Osamu somewhat unneccessarily after a minute of silence.

"I am. Who wouldn't be when knowing what tomorrow'd be?"

"So even the highest in rank of the academy duelists could become anxious before a duel, huh?" he teased.

She snorted. "So what if I could. I just want to enjoy my last day as a student here. And... call me a melancholic if you want, but I find it to be actually quite sad to leave the place I've grown fond to." When Osamu didn't reply, she casted a glance at him, her gaze softening. "And I wouldn't be able to stand here as I am if it weren't for you. For that, I want to thank you."

The Silfer tilted his head to one side, pondering perhaps. "I don't recall having done anything that is worth of your thanks."

"Youre just playing dumb," she shook her head, smiling. Why, she wonder, Osamu's mere presence could brush off her anxiety and fear aside. "Nii-san would not be back if you hadn't pulled him out of the darkness. That applies for Judai as well. And don't try to deny it or blame yourself again, lest you want me to knock some sense into your head," she quickly added.

"Yes, my Lady."

She gave him a look.

"What? You know I'm joking."

"I was being serious there."

Osamu sighed. "Fine. Sorry. I just don't want to distract us with such talk anymore. We know we both need a clear mind to face tomorrow's duel."

"Osamu..." she trailed off, and then sighed heavily. "Don't act as if you don't know me at all. I was trying to make _myself_ feel better by saying it out loud."

"Oh? As far as I know, you're not that ruthless."

She bit a lip, forcing down a rueful smile. Somewhere in her heart, she was glad that he regarded her in a postivie light. But in the end, it was all nothing but a facade she put on as a mask to cover whatever side she didn't want people to see. The Society of Light'd successfully seen through that mask and used it to support their cause. And now, despite her reluctance to be true to her parnter, she managed to say, "I am a more misrable and selfish person than you think."

Osamu kept silent, so she continued, her eyes averting his gaze and traced down the waves moving quietly below them.

"Don't you ever think that all along this time, I was just using your strength to cover my own weaknesses? All my sorrows and dark memories, they had all been placed upon your shoulders. You've saved my brother twice—something I could not manage to do on my own. You've also taken me to a higher level as a duelist by lending your strength to me in battles. And despite all that, you haven't attained any rank and remained in the shadows." She looked up at him and found no hints of emotion on his placid face. "Why are you so calm about things?" she spoke softly, a mere whisper in the wind. "Why won't you stand up to claim what's supposed to be yours? Why do you continue to support me instead?"

Asuka'd always hated herself for not being able to read what was behind his deep eyes. He was not a man of words or gestures, and after all they'd been through, she could not even guess what might the Silfer be thinking. And she hated it. It made her feel as if she was nobody to him. As if her existence didn't matter.

For some seconds they were just staring at each other, then finally, a troubled crease on his face appeared on the surface, eventhough it was a mere movement of his eyebrows deepening. "If my actions and silence had troubled you in any way, I'm sorry."

She was about to say ''_Suffer' might be a more fitting word,' _but chose to control her bubbling emotions and stood still. She waited.

"It's my fault: we've vowed to be trust each other's back as partners, yet I am still unable to do it outside of duel arena." He paused, as if trying to find the right words. "It's just... I need time." He sighed. "I need time. I need time to settle things with myself. I know it sounds selfish, but my head is in a mess."

She smiled. Anger and pain writhed in her stomach. "You didn't trust me."

"I didn't." He nodded, shutting his eyes shut. "I never did. Not you, not anyone. And perhaps... it was a mistake."

And would he now? She didn't dare to ask. It was out of her character to ask such a thing, more so demanding unneccessary confirmation.

He shot a weak smile when he fixed his gaze back at her from the ground. "I hope you will let me correct my past mistakes tomorrow. Maybe it wouldn't suffice, but it is all I can do to atone for my selfishness."

She was unsure how to react at first, but then offered a nod and turned away from him. "We... we should go back," she said, already trailing the way back to a higher ground. Of course, she was as guilty as he was in the matter, but his confession just now proved that he had been there, beside her, all along without looking at her. He had been supporting her without trusting her. He had been kind to her for... what? She didn't want to think about it.

Osamu jogged to follow after her. "And as for the part of you using me..."

They both stopped, Asuka turned to see him—who was almost on her eye level despite his superior height because of the conture of the ground—and felt like a hammer had just hit her in the head. He smirked.

"What do you say we're, at least, even?" he offered, his tone raising into a mocking one.

She blinked. "What?"

He sinply stared back, eyes wide, taunting.

"I—What's even about that when you're merely standing beside me, acting as if you care, when I—" She interrupted herself, and realized that she'd been shouting.

Osamu's smirk widened into a mischevous grin he rarely showed. He was often quiet and reserved than mocking and teasing. So when he did, Asuka was almost sure he was enjoying himself. "When you...?"

She glared at him, genuinely furious this time. "Is this why you continue to be with me? So you could find amusement in teasing me?"

His eyes glittered. "Maybe. And maybe not."

Before she could react, Osamu grabbed her by the wrist. A stern, calm look was back on his face. "Tomorrow is our last official duel, Asuka. You should worry about it more than anything else."

She opened her mouth to protest but then decided against it and nodded instead. "All right." Then came a bitter laugh. "And you just saw _another_ selfish part of me."

"It's fine to be a little selfish," he replied, shrugging. "I like people better that way since they won't have to fake all the time."

She flashed a smile, her anger forgotten, beginning to understand what Osamu was talking about. Many people around them had gone mad for denying themselves. And more people were lost of their selflessness. But then again, maybe selflessness was not the right word...

"You have to go back," he stated, walking away from the edge towards where they had come from. His hand slipped off from hers when they were above, probably assuming she would not need his help to climb up anymore.

Asuka followed him wordlessly. With others, silences were awkward. But with him, they were comfortable. Soothing, even.

When they were just paces away from the Obelisk Dorm's gateaway, Osamu made a gesture to the wall with a movement of his shoulder. "Need some help to scale it?" He was half joking, she knew. But despite the reality, she kicked herself mentally. She hadn't thought on how she'd be able to get back inside.

Asuka laughed. "No. And even if I do, I would not take it from _you_." Was he going to lift her up or hold her? Or perhaps becoming a footstool? No. She was not going to let him do it. Just imagining it made her stomach writhe in a way she'd never felt before.

An eyebrow went up without a smirk. He was serious, then. "You're sure?"

She looked for something to be used to help her and found a pile of bricks at a far point near the wall. Relieved, she pointed. "I can use those."

"At least let me help steady you. The wall's high. Even I would not be able to scale it without something to—"

She crossed her arms. "All right, all right. You help, then."

The pile of bricks was quite in a good condition, despite some cracks on some of them. Carefully, they piled it up in an orderly position, making sure that it would not crumble backward when being stepped on. Asuka thought. Well, he was right: it was almost impossible to hoist herself onto the wall all by herself. She threw a glance at Osamu.

"What will you do?"

"This is going to be harder than I thought," he mused aloud, much to himself. The pile was too thin in favor of height, so it could only support one person at a time. And not to mention the dangers of losing balance because of it. "I'll go first, then. I'll climb first to help you up. I should be able to act better as a hoister than this dead wall."

She felt uncomfortable, slightly anxious of the thought of him lifting her up, but nodded anyway. Osamu began to climb up, but not in a way that Asuka'd imagined.

Instead of scaling it slowly, he took some steps backwards and ran to the bricks with light steps. He then launched himself and used the pile to gain momentum in midair, and switched his position into a sitting one, his back facing the Dorm, and let his legs halted him from falling into the yard behind the wall. One thing she'd almost forgot: he was a man. She couldn't possibly make that move. He moved to better positioning himself to hoist her.

He offered a hand down at her. "Your left hand."

Asuka forced down a blush. Now she finally figured it out: he was not going to merely hoist her. That was too risky they could both fall down from the wall. He was going to lift her up. Like a child.

She stepped onto the pile and raised his left hand. Osamu took it and pulled it up; Asuka then raised another hand, which he also took on the arm from downside. He lifted her weight all at once when he'd made sure they were on a steady position, and in an instant, she was sitting on the wall, on a level with him with her face only some inches away from his.

She could even feel his breath now. She was glad her hair was a curtain that covered her face. With heat raising up, she was positive her cheeks would be in deep red.

Osamu looked to the ground and measured their height. "Think you can go down by yourself?"

"I—I could."

"Hm?" He looked back at her, his eyes studying her face while one hand moved to push away some strands of hair covering her face. The movement sent warmth as well as electricity onto her skin—suddenly making her uncomfortably aware of their proximity. "What's wrong? Are you hurt somewhere?"

"No," she croaked. She cleared her throat. "No." This time, she managed to say it in a stern voice. She inched away from him. "I'm fine."

"Then let's get you down. I don't think you'd be able to merely jump on your own."

"No."

"What?"

"I... can manage on my own."

Osamu gave a short laugh, voicing his disbelief. "And risking a chance of breaking your legs and leaving me partnerless? No. I'm helping."

She gave up at that. It was alerady foolish enough arguing with him on her own dorm's wall while trying not to attract unneccessary attention. So she chose to accept the offer silently.

Seeing her expression, Osamu leant and carefully hoisted one of her arms. When she was facing him, he put his hand on her waist to steady her and lowered her slowly. She felt like a five year old being hoisted by her older brother. But a little sister wouldn't be this nervous in the hands of her older brother. She could feel his muscles flexing with every movement he made-and it felt... warm on her skin.

When her feet were inches away from the ground, he let go of her and she landed softly on the grass.

Osamu scanned the field to make sure that no one was there, and then gave a nod to Asuka before dissapearing behind the wall. Asuka told herself to move and ran quietly to the building, using the backdoor to avoid patrols.

It took five minutes to be back to her room. After she shut the door, she leant her back on it and exhaled.

It was bad.

She could still feel his hand on her waist. She could still smell the scent of his sweat... And also... the lingering temptation to inch closer to him back when they had been on the wall. It was sickening as well as alluring. Somewhere in her mind, she knew it had to be the right thing to do, yet her common sense spoke otherwise.

Which would only mean that it _was_ really bad. Had her head hit something? Or had her brain detoriated and become a five-year-old's?

She breathed deeply. No. She couldn't be distracted now. Not when she had to focus on their duel tomorrow.

Getting up, she changed her clothes and threw herself to her bed, face succumbing into a pillow. She knew his scent would linger, even after she was asleep. A smile tugged on her lips. She felt stupid for smiling in the darkness, especially with no reason to. But she didn't brush it off nontheless, and let her consciousness fade away into the realm of dreams.


	5. The Encounter

**Chapter 5**

**The Encounter**

* * *

Asuka woke up that morning with a moan. The sun was already up but its ray of light was dim through her curtained window. But instead of getting up from her bed and preparing for today's duel, she shifted her position on the matress and curled her body under the blanket leisurely. A subtle smile tugged on her lips.

It was still there. The scent of fresh soil with mingling aroma of musk.

Her hand moved instinctively to a desk beside her bed, where a red cap sat quietly beside a photo of her younger self, Ryo and her brother. She examined it carefully through half-lidded eyes, fingers moving along the lines of the cap. Something was bubbling up inside her. Something she didn't recognize. Something foreign, tickling, and oddly addictive. She drew the cap closer to her face and closed her eyes, savouring the scent attached to it. It also smelled nice. It smelled like detergent and something heavy, sweet, and distinctly male.

How had the cap ended in her possession? She tried to remember... Ah, yes, Osamu had given it to her—as a sign of trust, a reminder that they now got each other's back as partners.

Partners...

Asuka shot her eyes wide and quickly got up from her bed, frantically running to take a shower and tossing the cap onto the bed as she scrambled and undressed.

What had she been thinkng? How could she be laying on the bed when today was _the _day? Gosh, she didn't even notice that she'd been late by ten minutes for breakfast!

She took a quick shower, changed into her usual attire and put on her gloves and then grabbed her deck and started running to the main hallway. Most of the girls had already sitting on their tables with half-empty plates, some eyes fell on her but she shoved their curious glances off. It was rare to see Asuka being late. She let herself to succumb into the bitter feeling of wanting to slam her head into a nearest wall.

At least she didn't have to line up to get her food, she thought, trying to see her pitiable state in a more positive light. Eating her breakfast quickly, Asuka finally noticed that most of the students were not chatting or laughing as they usually did. The room was unusually silent. Only some occasional murmurs or low voices were heard, accompanied by dings from their forks on white plates, but apart from those she could hear none. It was as if everyone had been told that they were going to be massacred right after breakfast.

"Asuka-san."

She looked up from her plate to see Momoe and Junko passing over her table. She flashed a polite smile as a way of greeting the two. They smiled back in return. Rather nervously. The two walked off without saying another word.

She finished her breakfast and quickly walked away from the hall. If her guess was right, Osamu should be waiting for her already on the gate—the same spot where he'd usually waited for her. She went down the stairs and bursted out the dorm, finding her hunch to be true as she spotted a figure in red and white leaning against the gate. He straightened up and when his eyes found hers, a strange jolt went through her spine. She suppressed some nervousness growing inside and smiled aplogetically at him.

"Sorry I'm kinda late."

Osamu looked at her for a minute before saying, "You look like you're going to faint." His voice deep and rumbled, it carried easily through the air. Then concern was visibly shown on his face. "You're sure you've slept enough?"

"I have." It wasn't a lie. But not the truth in full account.

"Hmm," he said, eyeing her face. Asuka quickly averted her eyes, not daring to meet his gaze in dread that he'd be able to dig further into her.

Ignoring her drumming heart—gosh, what the hell was happening to her?—she beckoned for him to go. "C'mon or we'll be late," she said curtly and began to walk away.

Osamu gave a shrug and followed her without questions. She was glad he kept a distance some paces away or she swore she might have exploded. Her heart pounded as if she'd been running for miles, and heat began rising up on her cheeks. She knew that, after the graduation duel, no matter what their results were, she had to tell him. She had to tell him of her choice.

She had to tell him that she was going to leave.

She'd thought everything through two days ago. She'd thought of the benefits of going abroad and entering the prestigious international cirlce of elite duelists, and if her choice was to be made from scaling the positives and negatives alone, it would had been made already. She bit her lower lip in an attempt to calm herself down. This was not the time to be thinking of something else. After all, there was still this last duel standing between her current self and the future. _One thing at a time_, she reminded herself.

"Asuka," Osamu called from behind after some minutes of walking.

She didn't stop or bothered to glance back at him. "What?" It sounded too harsh and more like a snap like she'd wanted it to.

"Asuka."

"What is it?" she snapped, finally looking over her shoulder.

"Just _where_ are you going?"

She stopped in her tracks, suddenly aware that she was walking down a path leading to the _Cliff_ instead to the main building of the academy. Her face flushed and she made a turn to her right, walking as fast as she could without breaking into a run. Cursed her messed up mind.

A hand grabbed her arm in mid-track and she turned to see Osamu's face just some inches away from hers. "Wha—?" she croaked.

His eyes narrowed as they trailed her face slowly, hazel eyes scanning her with definite care that seemed to be able to see any lies through. She fought off the strong urge to look away from him. "You're very strange," he finally said in a quiet voice. His head inched closer, eyebrows tauted. His breath—warm and filled with an aroma of mint and sage—brushed her face when he spoke up again. She reminded herself to breathe normally. "What's wrong with you?" he asked in a low voice. "It's not merely just because you're nervous about the duel, isn't it?"

"It's nothing. Really," she managed to say. Too weakly, it seemed, judging from Osamu's slightly creased eyebrows that spoke up for his doubts. After some seconds of uncomfortable silence, she finally gave up and threw her glance away. She'd forgotten that the tall Silfer could be very intimidating with his intense stare and quietness if he wanted to.

"You won't be able to duel with all you've got like this," he said, his tone softening. His grip on her arm loosened, but he didn't let her go. "You can tell me anything, you know. Didn't we promise to start over and trust each other?"

"As a partner, yes," she replied shakily, "but this is..."

Osamu's eyes glinted. "Personal?"

She didn't dare to move or to stare back at him, neither she could find the right words to explain herself.

"So you will not trust me enough with your personal matters, then? Fine." He let go of her arm and pulled himself back. If he was hurt or dissapointed, his voice and face didn't give it away. "But please pull yourself together or you won't be able to duel with a clear mind. And we're not planning to lose, aren't we?"

She shook her head, unable to look at him still. Osamu sighed, one hand moving on his hip, his weight shifted to one foot; Asuka knew that it was a gesture she'd accustomed to him being reluctant or weary. Probably the latter.

When he looked up to her again, there was this dark flash in his eyes that made her feet rooted to the ground and unable to move. "Take a deep breath," he instructed. It was an order.

Asuka did as she was told and filled her chest with fresh air, hoping that it would push aside a bitter and heavy feeling on her stomach. She closed her eyes and imagined the air circulating throughout her body, cleansing her, wiping away all the fears and anxiety. Then slowly, she exhaled and opened her eyes. To her relief, Osamu's stare seemed to had lost its malice when she looked at him.

"Feeling better?" he asked.

She nodded and smiled weakly. "I'm sorry. I was just... not myself today." '_Especially when I woke up'_ was what she didn't audibly add.

An eyebrow went up. "Any idiot could see that. So? Ready to go? Or do you need me to carry you?"

Normally, she would laugh it off or throw a playful punch at her partner. But now, she was having a hard time controlling a strange feeling of sweet longing bouncing inside her chest. She shrugged and walked past through him, forcing an amused smile. "Don't be ridiculous."

"Look who's talking," he commented in a mutter, shaking his head, and jogged to catch after her.

Together, they walked into the main building located on the center of the island. Many duelists were already there. Some were busy checking on their decks and duel disks, some other were talking nervously over their battle tactics and strategies, while some were just pacing back and forth with invisible clouds hanging atop their heads. Asuka and Osamu walked past some Obelisk students to get a closer look at the large monitor hanging on the wall. They scanned it and found their names. Next to them, linked with a red line, were 'Fubuki Tenjouin' and 'Judai Yuki.'

Her eyes widened in surprise.

"Nice setup they've prepared for us," said Osamu. "And look, the duel will be starting thirty minutes from now. Wanna go there now?"

"Oh. Yes. It's better to arrive sooner, I guess." Finally, she allowed herself to truly smile. There was a warm feeling growing inside her when she knew that she was going to face her brother and one of her best friends.

"You look happy," said he after a while.

She nodded. "I am. I owe them much, and there's also a lot of things I want to settle with them. What do _you_ think?"

"It'll not be an easy win, that much is obvious." The corners of his mouth tugged down, and he gave her a grave look. "Don't you dare spacing out again."

Asuka laughed, feeling relieved all of a sudden. She could think about her departure and Osamu later. For now, she should just be focused on the duel ahead. _One thing at a time_. "Don't worry, I will not."

"Good. Let's go now before it's too crowded here."

They withdrew from the clearing and made a way to the Duel Field. There were not so many people there since the rule demanded that only the duelists who were being called should go inside. It meant that there would be no watchers and that was good. She wanted to be focused. She wanted to give her best and the less distraction, the better.

The big, metal door was closed, indicating that there was still a duel going on inside. She could hear nothing from the other side, though, and was curious on who were dueling whom. They waited in silence—both of them chose to lean against the wall rather than sitting to better control the rising nervousness—and after what seemed to be a full fifteen minutes that felt longer than an hour, the door slid open. Jun and Edo came from the Duel Field, followed by a pair of male Obelisk students. And the winner? It was crystal clear from the expression Edo and Jun wore. They had won.

The two stopped to greet them, Edo politely nodded to both, and Jun was only addressing Asuka, and then they went away. She wondered if Jun was still dissapointed after she'd turned him down. She chewed the inside of her mouth. He should be, judging from his pained gaze and stiff shoulders. She felt a pang of guilt but swallowed it hard when her name was being called.

Judai and Fubuki came up just when theirs were being called. They both smiled at them. Fubuki gave a wink. "Hello, little sister," he greeted her.

"It's nice to know I'll be dueling you, Nii-san," she replied with a smile.

Fubuki chuckled, and turned his attention to Osamu, who was talking to Judai paces away from them. "And I see I can no longer call you Hat Boy. Where's your trademark equipment? Feeling fresher without it?" he teased.

For a moment, Asuka felt like she'd just been kicked in the stomach. She remembered how she'd clung to it this morning, but quickly dissolved the thought before colors rose up to her cheeks.

Osamu eyed the sister, and then back to the brother. "A change of pace sometimes does you good," he commented lightly, modestly avoiding the fact that he'd given it to his partner. Asuka secretly let out a sigh of relief. Fubuki would tease her to death if he knew what'd really happened to it.

"But isn't it cool that we get to duel you guys?" said Judai, more enthusiastic than he'd been in these past three weeks and less cheerful than she'd remembered how he'd used to be before the other dimension incident. "We've been aiming for this!"

She summoned her Obelisk pride when she smiled again. "You got chosen because _I_ have many things to settle with you two."

Judai grinned. "Heh. Nice to hear that."

They entered the vast room and took their rightful sides, standing proud opposing each other. Professor Chronos stood in the middle of the arena, his left hand holding a clipboard. Although not visible, Asuka knew some other officials from the Academy were also watching them, and they were their evaluators, no doubt. She was calm, thankfully, and gave a nod to assure Osamu who was looking at her. She felt warm when he smiled at her.

Chronos cleared his thoat to gain the duelists' attention. "As you may already knew: you will start with 8000 Life Points in this duel. The rest of the rules stay the same like any other Tag Duel. Now, let us not waste more time," he said, his voice was still like a squeal to Asuka's ears, "and let the Duel Academy Graduation Tag Duel begin!"

The arena materialized as soon as the four of them activated their duel disks. Asuka and Fubuki said in unison: "Duel!"

The first turn was hers. She drew her starting cards and drew another one. Not bad. Three monsters, two traps and one spell. "I set a monster," she said and put down her monster card. "And set two cards. Turn end."

Fubuki smiled when his turn started. "I've never thought dueling against you would make my blood all boiled out like this. Let's see how much you've grown, Asuka!" His expression became serious as he drew a card. "I set up this field card!" And Gaia Power was activated, turning the duel field into a thick rain forest constructed from the virtual reality system. Tall, thick-leaved trees grew in such a speed around them, enveloping the area entirely.

Asuka swallowed. Gaia Power's effect would increase the attack of all earth monsters by 500 points in exchange of decreasing their defense by 400. Did Fubuki now play a deck of earth element? This was going to be bad. She had to do something to that card or they'd not be able to outmatch his monsters' attack points.

As if the field card was not bad enough, he summoned Chiron the Mage.

"This is it!" he shouted. "Chiron the Mage's effect will let me destroy the cards on your trap zone!" He discarded one spell card to the Graveyard and Asuka's Trap Jammer card was destroyed. "Now, Chiron, attack the faced-down monster!"

The card turned to reveal Etoile Saber in a defense position and the dancer was destroyed with Chiron's attack. Asuka shielded her face from the impact although no damage was done.

"I set one more card—" a card appeared on his trap zone—"and end my turn."

It was Osamu's turn, then.

He drew a card wordlessly and placed two cards on the trap zone. Asuka smiled inwardly when she noticed that one of them was, luckily, Sakuretsu Armor. "I activate Future Fusion from my hand." The card appeared on the field, sending five monsters from his deck to the Graveyard. "I activate a spell to destroy the field, and I summon Red Eyes Black Metal Dragon from my Graveyard by discarding one Red Eyes Wyvern."

The large, pitch-black, metal skinned dragon appeared with a heavy bump and roared, sending thrills to Fubuki's face, he was more furious than when his field was destroyed. Asuka noticed that Judai's eyes had widened upon the quick summon of the dangerous monster. And that was why Osamu was a dangerous opponent: he had always been able to summon high-levelled monsters in just one turn, using a combination of tricky card effects to gain the momentum. And as an addition, Red Eyes deck was a deck Fubuki's dark persona had used—and brought him under their dark influence in the proccess—when they'd found him two years ago. Osamu'd also never told her how he'd been able to resist their control.

"I summon Prime Material Dragon from my hand with Red Eyes Black Metal's effect,"—the golden dragon appeared and steadied itself after landing—"and moving on to attack."

A nervous laugh gurgled from Fubuki's throat. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Osamu, are you really going to launch both of them right onto me? All at once?"

Osamu only gave a wry smile in return. Behind him, Asuka flinched a bit. It was going to be hurt, real damage or not.

The older Obelisk gritted his teeth as Chiron exploded into shards by Prime Material's attack. The second one was worse: a direct hit that damaged his LP quite severely. He knew he could not use any trap or spell to negate them because of Prime Material's counter-negation effect and accepted the damage wordlessly. Behind him, Judai was a bit agitated and frowned at the majestic dragons, perhaps calculating his next move. Their LP decreased to 4800 after the Battle Phase.

"I set a monster," said Osamu, reminding Asuka as well as his opponents that he had not normal summoned any monster on his first phase, and a faced down card appeared beside the black metal dragon. "Turn end."

When Judai stepped forward, his face was grim with determination. "My turn. Draw!" He looked at his cards and closed his eyes brifely. He smiled. "I'd never expected that you guys are this strong. But we won't back down just yet! I set down one card and activate a spell!" He activated Emergency Call that allowed him to draw one Elemental monster into his hand. "I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy Future Fusion."

The spell card cracked and the spell was broken in merely seconds. It meant that they could no longer summon F.G.D in a quick-play. Judai pressed on. "I activate my monster's effect and add Skycraper to my hand." Now, it was getting more serious. The Silfer set up the field card—which enabled his monsters' lower attack points to defeat Asuka and Osamu's—and moved on to summon Prisma and fused two cards from his hand. The golden hero emerged along with Plasma Vice. "Pisma," he ordered, "attack Prime Material Dragon!"

Their superrior monsters were going to be defeated by Skycraper's effect if it weren't for Sakuretsu Armor. Osamu quickly activated its effect and it destroyed Prisma. Judai snarled.

"Nice play. But no matter," he scoffed. "Vice, aim for Red Eyed Black Metal!"

The mechanical hero nodded and leapt forward and slahsed at Black Metal Dragon who roared in pain before being sent into the Graveyard. The Skycraper finally did its job, increasing Vice's attack by 1000 points and enabling him to destroy the metallic dragon and damaging Osamu by 800 points at the same time.

Judai relaxed a bit after his Battle Phase and announced, "I end my turn."

Asuka received a nod from Osamu and stepped forward.

This was it. Her last duel in Academy.

Andrenaline rushed through her veins and she was unable to keep her mouth from curling into a smile. She knew she had to do something to get rid of the field card, and possibly destroying the Vice too if she was able to in this turn. But despite the burden, she didn't waver.

She spoke in a low voice so only Osamu could hear. "Whether we're going to win or lose, I want to make this duel memorable to both of us. I want you to know that I am glad to have a partner to whom I can trust my back to."

He smiled in reply, with his arms still crossed on his chest, but then tilted his head to one side and frowned. Bewildered by her sudden confession.

She laughed a little and shook her head. "I just want you to hear it, that's all."

"Then don't keep our opponents waiting." He motioned for Asuka to step forward with a slight movement of his chin. "There'll be a plenty of time to discuss everything else after we pass through this."

Her smile became bitter and she turned away from him, her gaze focused on the field once again. _No_, she thought, _there will not be a _plenty_ of time_. After this duel, schedule told them that they only had this one day at the Academy to celebrate their last moment together before the official ceremony took place one day from now. And after that, she had only half a day to get prepared for her departure. She might not be able to see him for months, or years, even, after tomorrow.

But more importantly, she would not be able to look at him in the eyes were they to lose now.

So it was her turn then: her turn to show what she was capable of as a partner worthy of his trust. To show what kind of duelist she had grown into in these past three years.

Smiling confidently, she drew a card from her duel disk


	6. One Request

**_A/N : _**_Sorry for the long update, but here it is: a chapter you must've been waiting for! It's Red Hat x Asuka time! (Finally, eh...) Again, please do Read and Review if you're interested. I'd looovee to hear your opinion about this one~ _

* * *

**Chapter 6**

**One Request**

* * *

The duel had lasted a bit longer than Asuka had anticipated. She hadn't underestimated her own brother and Judai, of course, but with them working together and giving out their best had given Osamu and Asuka a hard time. They'd been forced to switch tactics more than twice the moment Judai's Skycraper had been activated. It had taken quite some time before they could obtain their most valuable cards and used them to turn the tables by strengthening their defenses until their Future Fusion and Trap Jammer brought them to victory.

Judai almost lost his balance when his last-standing hero was destroyed from the field by the malicious breath of the five headed dragon. Their LP dropped to zero in an instant.

"That's it!" shouted Prof. Chronos. "We have the victors now!" he announced.

Asuka stared at the dissapearing duel field for the longest time before Osamu startled her by tapping her shoulder lightly. She looked at him. "We... won," she breathed, trying to swallow in the fact that finally, her days of being a student in Duel Academy were over. She had imagined how this day would end in many scenarios playing over her mind eversince she'd started her third year. She had imagined how triumphant and joyful she'd be when it was all over. But it all felt so different now that she stood in the very end of the line of her academic years.

"We did," he confirmed with a subtle smile. But when she simply stared at him without saying anything, Osamu laughed. "Put on some pride to your face, Asuka. That's not a face you want to show after winning your last duel in this place." He squeezed her shoulder before walking past her and turned round to face Fubuki and Judai.

"I really didn't expect that coming," sighed Judai the moment they were close enough to shake hands. "But I did give it my all, so I shouldn't have any regrets." He mustered a smile and shook Osamu's hand, his eyes glittered in a way Asuka had thought impossible after his ascend as the Supreme King. "Nice game, Osamu. And Asuka, too."

She stared at Judai's hand for a moment before accepting it. "It... was a good duel," she finally said, smiling. "And you too, Nii-san."

Fubuki though, seemed more pleasant with himself rater than his partner. He took Asuka's hand immediately with both hands and bounced closer to her. "Ah, I know! Why don't we four have a new duel team? I'm sure we'd make a dangerous combination and would be able to bombard the dueling world with our skills!" he beamed.

"W-what? No," said Judai hurriedly, shaking his head. "I already know what I'm gonna be doing after this. Sorry to dissapoint you, Fubuki."

Hiding a sneer, Osamu added, "Then I also respectfully decline. I, too, have my own agenda for the future."

At that, Asuka's heart sank. She remembered now, that after this was all over, she had to tell him of her choice. All this time she'd avoided talking about the matter with him, afraid of how would his respone affect her decision. It was her own insecurities that held her, she knew, but she didn't have the courage to face them. No. Not yet. But she had too, after this duel.

How would he react? Would he simply accept it and walk away? Most likely.

She felt stupid all of a sudden. She was not even sure how he would respond to the not-so-shocking-news, which by her hunch, told her that he was not going to mind her departure as much as _she_ was. So why did she even bother overthinking things?

"That's a lame name for a band."

Judai's comment brought her back to reality. She was now aware that Fubuki was still holding her hand, so she carefully withdrew it.

Fubuki groaned. "Whaaaat? What part of that cool name is wrong?" He glanced back at Asuka with teary eyes. "Oh, c'mon. Tell me you're on my side, little sister," he pleaded.

"Would you stop being so frivolous all the time," she sighed, silently glad that her reverie hadn't drawn any concern from them. "But I'm glad you two have decided your futures. That means I don't have to worry all night on what you'd be doing after this."

"Ouch." He flinched. "Do you view us as idiots that much?"

"Hey, don't count me in," Judai quickly said.

She let out a chuckle. Nothing assured her more than to see Fubuki and Judai's old selves returning to them. Three years had changed everyone at the Academy, and if there were people who'd been affected the most by the series of loss and duels of darkness, than her brother and Judai were among the band. "Well, I'm relieved. I shall see you two at the ceremony tomorrow then."

They all nodded and went out of the room, ready to take their next individual tests. The two pairs parted ways at a forked hallway, but when Osamu was about to enter a classroom to take a simulation duel test, Asuka grabbed the hem of his sleeve. He stopped and turned to face her.

"What is it?" he asked.

She hesitated for a moment, unsure on how to say things flooding her mind. "Um... Can I see you after the examination?"

"We'll bound to, at the party tonight," he replied casually, shrugging.

"No... That's not what I meant." Fighting the sickening feeling of guilt and fear, she looked away, aware that they were not in a private place. There were students and teachers around them. She found it hard to find words. "I... need to talk to you. Alone," she said quietly.

Osamu tilted his head to one side, eyeing her. "All right," he said after a moment of silent observation—much to Asuka's relief. He smiled. "Well, good luck for both of us, then. Make sure you don't space out again."

* * *

~ xx 0 xx ~

* * *

The rest of the tests were a bit more challenging than Asuka had imagined during her training sessions. She'd been asked to plan a duel without her duel disk, going on a duel simulation with a random deck, and faced off an instructor on a one on one duel. Not everything went out smoothly, though. She'd had some difficulty on the part where she'd been forced to use a foreign deck—often miscalculating her own moves and taking a clumsy turn. She had needed a full five rounds of trials and errors to finally grasp the weaknesses and strenghts of her deck and use it accordingly, an effort which'd earned her a close victory.

Thankful that she had been confident enough on the two past rounds, Asuka got to leave quite early. Her PDA showed 04.07... Had Osamu done his tests?

She walked to the main gate with a pounding heart. Most students in the main building had tried to talk to her along the way, though, asking if she had decided on whom she was going to be partnered with during the dance that would be held tonight. She had kindly refused their offers by stating that she hadn't decided on that matter yet, but not every one of them had backed down easily: a group of Obelisk students had come up to her, asking—if by asking she meant subtly insisting—for her to be their partner. (She'd sneaked past them with some difficulties with Momoe and Junko's help).

Half-jogging, Asuka took the longest yet most quiet way to reach the gate. By the time she'd arrived at the gate, it was already a few hours before sunset. Osamu was already there, waiting patiently for her with his back against the metal bars, his hands buried in his dark jeans' pockets. She fastened her pace upon seeing him.

"Sorry," she managed to say, almost breathlessly.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Just caught up in something." She cast a glance at their surrounding and realized that there were some boys glancing at her, probably still aiming for the same goal. "Let's not stay around here," she said in a low voice as she beckoned for her partner to leave the place. Osamu followed her wordlessly like he usually did.

They walked eastward, to where the lighthouse was located. She could see the light from the tall building quite clearly after they'd left the woods. Against the orange light of the setting sun, the yellowish glow it gave was dim and soothing.

"Where are we going?" asked the Silfer after some minutes of walking in silence.

"The Harbor," she replied curtly. She didn't slow down her pace or turned to look at him. "We'll talk there."

It seemed that he'd noticed the stern tone in her voice but chose to tag along quietly. Secretly, she was glad he'd been walking behind her; her face must be colored by anxiety and uncertainties by now, providing a sight she wouldn't want him to see. _Focus_,_ idiot_, she slapped herself mentally, steeling herself as she descended on the stone staircase. _This may be the last chance I could ever spend with him. I should stop confusing him with my selfish thoughts._

They went down to the lowest level of the harbor—which was, as she'd predicted and hoped for, empty—then she turned to face him. "I'd like to ask you something," she said. Her voice didn't give away any doubts lingering within.

A pair of dark, hazel eyes assessed her. Osamu lifted one shoulder. "Ask away."

"Would you—"she interrupted herself, "no. _Please _duel me."

A surprised look came to his eyes, which strangely only lasted for a few seconds, before it turned into an amused one. "A duel?" he mused aloud. "What is it all of a sudden? Not having enough excercise from the examination?"

She didn't reply, her eyes staring into his with a determination she hoped she could transmit through her gaze. Words were not needed here if a duel could speak out for both of them.

"You're serious, then," he finally said. "Fine. A duelist should never back down from a challange, or so I was told. Let's get it on."

They both distanced themselves from one another and activated their duel disks in unison by saying: "Duel!"

Osamu: 8000 / Asuka: 8000

"I'll go first," said Osamu as he drew his sixth card. "I summon a Wyvern and activate Golden Sarcophagus from my hand." A golden box appared and a card from his deck went into it and the box dissapeared. The effect of the card would allow him to get the card in the box to be drawn directly to his hand after two turns. "I place two facedown cards. I end my turn."

"My turn. Draw!" Asuka drew and smiled when she saw that she'd just drawn a Polymerization. "I activate a spell card to fuse two of my monsters! It's your stage now, Cyber Blader!"

A purplish elegant female cyber appeared on the field as the two monsters being used as fusion materials went into the Graveyard. "I summon Etoille Cyber from my hand!" Another female cyber emerged. "Moving on to attack!" She ordered her two cybers to attack Osamu's Wyvern. "Cyber Blader, crush his Wyvern!"

Nodding, the elegant cyber leapt forward and slashed at the Wyvern, damaging Osamu's LP. Asuka wasn't pleased enough, though. There were two cards sitting on his Trap Zone, yet he didn't deflect her attack. He must be plotting something, she thought. "Etoille Cyber, attack him directly!"

Osamu squirmed a little as the second cyber's effect kicked in in the phase: increasing its Attack Point by 500 when dealing a direct hit.

Asuka: 8000 / Osamu: 6000

"You've improved a lot," said Osamu after absorbing the damage. There was this... pleasant expression on his face that made her heart wanted to jump out of her chest. "Don't you think this duel reminds you of the time when we've first dueled against each other?"

She remembered that it had been almost months since she had faced him as an opponent. She had forgotten the excitement of dueling against the tall Silfer when not under the pressure of having to seize victory. She had clearly doubted his abilities the first time they had met. Practically speaking, who would be interested in a Silfer? That had been her logic and it was a common one, right? Her theory and assumptions had been quickly dissolved by his performance on a tournament for freshmen, though, where she'd been bested by the so-called-weakling.

A rueful smile was etched on her face upon the reminiscence. "Do you know how much I underestimated you before the tournament?"

Osamu mimicked her expression and said, "And do you know how many tantrums I got after winning it?"

She laughed a little. The students had been very prejudiced before a handful of calamity struck the Academy: they'd thought that everything was decided by their uniforms. It'd been quite ironic when Judai and Osamu had been the ones to fend off most of the dark bringers.

"Let's not waste more time. My turn," said Osamu, drawing a third card."I summon a facedown monster and end my turn."

_What is he plotting? _Asuka thought as she eyed the brown haired man carefully. As usual, Osamu's face didn't give anything away. But he had to be plotting something since his ultimate card, Future Fusion, was not yet to be drawn. Bad starting cards, perhaps?

She returned her focus on the duel as she drew. "Draw." She didn't want to waste any time. She had to end this as quick as she could since she knew that delaying the duel any longer would prove to fatal were Osamu to get and activate his Future Fusion. "I activate Machine Angel Ritual from my hand and sacrifice a card and my Etoille Cyber on the field to summon Cyber Angel Benten!"

The Ritual Monster appeared with a red flash that gave out an eerie glow. The fan-holding samurai changed her stance into an attacking mode immediately after the summoning. But Asuka was not going to stop. "I normal summon another Etoille Cyber from my hand. Now, Cyber Benten, attack the defensive monster!"

As the monster flipped open, it turned out to be Morphing Jar. Both Asuka and Osamu discarded every card in their hands and got to draw 5 cards in return. But it didn't change the fact that his field was empty, now.

This time, though, Osamu should whistand Benten's effect of damaging his LP equal to his Morphing Jar's DEF. Asuka waved her hand to launch Cyber Blader and Etoille Cyber to land a direct hit afterwards. The Silfer shielded himself from the impact with both arms crossed before his head.

"What are you doing," she bitterly spat after her battle phase had ended. Anger and frustation began to grow inside her chest. "Why aren't you countering my moves? Are you going to let me win like this?"

Osamu balanced himself after almost being knocked down by the previous attack and smiled at her. "Patience, Asuka," he said.

Was he going easy on her? Could be. It was Osamu she was facing here, after all. But then again, she didn't believe that he'd just let her win simply because they were about to graduate soon. What kind of graduation present was that?

Suppressing her annoyance, she stated, "Turn end."

Asuka: 8000 / Osamu: 1800

"My turn," he announced while drawing a sixth card.

Asuka tried, and failed, in hiding a smile of pride. She studied his face for a moment before saying, "Future Fusion will not get you anywhere, you know. It will not be able to defend you from my next turn."

At that, Osamu smiled, his eyes glinting red in the setting sun's dim light. "But you're not going to have the next turn." He held out one card from his hand. "I summon Blizzard Dragon in Attack Position and advance to special summon Red Eyes Black Metal Dragon by removing it from play!"

_It finally shows itself. _Asuka watched the big dragon landed on the field. "But it won't be able to defeat me," she said.

"It alone will not," he complied. "But it will not advance all by itself."

"What?"

"I activate Dragon's Mirror from my hand and sacrifice my Red Eyes Black Metal and four other dragons in my graveyard to summon F.G.D!"

The sky darkened the moment a spiral of dissorted dimension's gate cracked open above their heads. A multiple roars that had assured Asuka of victory so many times during their Tag Duels filled the air. Then the beast came; five dragon heads emerged from the opening dimension, roaring viciously.

Osamu, on the other hand, wasn't finished. "Now, at the expense of my LP, I activate a Trap Card: Return from the Different Dimension!"

Almost all of the materials that'd been sent into from the Graveyard were called back one by one to his field. The metallic dragon appeared first, followed by his Wyvern that'd been destroyed perviously, the Prime Material Dragon he had sacrificed through Foolish Burial, and lastly, Red Eyes Black Dragon.

Five majestic dragons stood before her. Asuka gritted her teeth. So that was the reason why he'd played Morphing Jar: to send the materials needed to the Graveyard for his fusion and then bringing them back all at once in one turn.

But those dragons wouldn't be able to deplete her LP this turn. One of her traps would ensure her of that.

"Battle Phase." Osamu gave a signal for his dragons to attack.

"Trap activated: Negate Attack!" said the Obelisk before any of his monsters destroy hers.

"Counter-Trap: Solemn Judgement!" Again, his LP decreased by half. The newly activated trap quickly chained hers and destroyed the card into pieces.

This was it, then. The dragons quickly took turns in attacking, sending all of her monsters to the Graveyard, and then launched themselves at Asuka to deplete her LP completely.

The field and holograms dissapeared, leaving only the two duelists standing facing each other.

It was her loss. Her defeat. But somehow, she wasn't surprised nor burdened by the fact. Instead, relief filled her heart and mind as if some weight had just been lifted from her shoulders. Asuka laughed while shaking her head. "As expected, I couldn't win, after all."

Osamu walked over to her. "The real deal, now: what is it that you wanted to talk about?" He sounded casual, but she knew he was serious. She'd been hiding too many things from him as of late.

"It's about a decision I've made," she said slowly, eyes darting from his face to the sea bathed in gold and orange. "You might have heard Junko and Momoe saying this before, but I originially wanted to stay at this Academy as a research student." Her companion was silent, so she took it as a cue to continue. "But a letter came to me two weeks ago. A letter from an international Duel College."

"They invited you," stated Osamu with a shrug. He was not surprised nor bothered, then. She felt a sting of dissapointment.

"They did." Her gaze shifted from the sea to his face, and then back to the sea, finding it hard to face the deep hazel orbs. "Just a few days ago, I've made up my mind to join them and spread my wings. I actually have planned to talk to you about it first. I was unsure on what to do, afraid that my choice would lead me to a place I don't belong..." She trailed off. "But after our talk at the dorm, I chose to accept it. I'd figured that if I would want to be stronger to help and protect those around me, then first I have to take the gamble. And that's why... I want to thank you properly."

"Thank me?"

"Yes," she said, almost hesitantly. Memories flickered in her mind as she spoke. "You were the one who taught me to enjoy dueling. You helped Nii-san overcoming his darkness. And you stayed to support me, even if I've dissapointed you with my recklessness." She slowly looked up to him, feeling warm even though her heart was pounding painfully against her chest. "You've been with me this whole time, giving me the courage to explore the endless of possibilities I've been scared to take. I really am thankful."

He stared back at her stoically for the longest time before saying, "Then I must return it." A subtle smile tugged at his lips. "No one can become strong by fighting alone. You taught me of that."

She caught a faint up-turning on his lips and realized that it was truly genuine. She swallowed hard. "Hey. I... have a request." Telling herself to sound as casual and relaxed as possible, she uttered the words stuck on her mind: "Since I'll be leaving the day after the graduation ceremony tomorrow, would you be willing to go with me to the party tonight?"

"As a partner?" He blinked.

"For the _dance_." Her voice was barely a whisper.

She didn't look away this time and saw realization dawned to Osamu as he slowly grinned. "I wouldn't say no to that."

Before she could reply, he moved closer and gathered her into his arms. She felt warm everywhere. She gasped as their bodies were pressed against each other in a tight embrace. "O—Osamu—?"

"You said that you're going to leave the day after tomorrow, right?" he asked through her hair, his voice deep and calm. "Then think of this as a gesture of saying thanks."

Asuka's body relaxed a bit upon his words and she let herself to be lost in thoughts as she savoured in his scent. It was the same scent that had done magic to her this morning—the same scent that had been attached on a certain red hat sitting on her desk. His breaths warmed her neck as he pressed his arms on her back.

Her heart was racing, she knew, and so was Osamu's. She could feel his heart's steady rythm leaping in pace by each passing second. Hers was beating in an excitement and ecstacy foreign to her, and she could only guessed that his was too.

The sun was already setting, illuminating the world around her with the slightest touch of reddish gold. For a moment, all she could feel was his slow, even breathing. He was a gentle and soothing presence, especially in silences, but she'd never thought of his _touch_ as being firm and strong. Not until now. She almost shivered when she felt his muscles flexing and contracting.

He pulled away without releasing his grip, his dark eyes were locked on hers, silencing her mind, quickening her pulse. Then, he touched her face with one hand and leant in close very slowly.

His lips met hers.

His hand moved to brush over her side, fitting to the bend in her waist, and finally, curving over her hip.

Asuka tensed up at first, unsure of herself and of her body warmth escalating upon the movement. The first thing that appeared on her mind was to break free from him, out of embarassment, but finding herself unable to. _Not wanting to._ As their breaths collided, she instinctively closed her eyes, parted her lips, and moved her hands tentatively to his shoulders, which then travelled up to his neck and into his short hair.

A heavy, warm feeling filled her body, slowing her train of thoughts. It was soon replaced by a none-so-new excitement that ran through her like the blood in her veins the moment Osamu bent his head down to deepen the kiss. Asuka remembered this one as the same feeling she had felt on the night before. The same feeling of wanting. Of yearning.

The sensation was both frightening and elating, and she never wanted it to stop.

As the sun began to sank behind the purplish ocean, the air was beginning to get colder, but his lips were warm and so were his hands and body. His movements were slow and steady and they assured her that she was safe. That she had a place to return to.

Slowly, Osamu moved her to the side of the lighthouse some paces behind her without parting from her. He sank to the cold stone floor and gently pulled her down with him, his back leaning against the wall that stood facing the vast ocean, and she was facing him with her legs trailing to the side. Her palms were on both sides of his head. Osamu's hands had moved to unequip their duel disks before he pulled her closer by the shoulder.

The gentle breeze pushed strands of her hair loose. They only parted briefly to quietly gasp for air. Asuka hadn't opened up her eyes fully to take a good look at his face, but she knew if she had, his cheeks would be slightly red despite the chilling air, for his face felt warm on her lips.

Everything about this was new to Asuka. It was the first time she assessed someone's physical features with her touch and mouth rather than relying on her vision. He felt warm and strong, making her feel small and fragile in his embrace; A lithe yet muscular body. A sharp angular face. A prominent chin. Soft, well-shaped lips. It was surprising to realize how she had missed all of these before.

Her head buzzed with nervousness when Osamu tilted his head slightly and descended it to the crook of her neck, but the rest of her seemed to know exactly what it was doing, because it all pulsed to the same rythm upon his slighest touch. She could hear him breathing on her ear and could feel his breaths on her skin as he started nuzzling her neck.

Asuka broke free from him, just enough to stare into his eyes, and burned the sight of him into her brain. Osamu was staring back at her. He blinked very slowly, his face serious, yet tender. Her fingers traced the line of his cheekbones, then to his side and brushed his hair. Osamu tilted his head to one side as he closed his eyes. His whole body relaxed.

If she had moved by impulse before, now it was based on a growing affection. She hadn't had the courage to even look at him in such proximity before, but now things were different. She could be honest with him. She could let go of the restraints.

"Is this how you want to thank me?" she asked softly, her thumb brushing over his lips.

He opened his eyes and looked at her. "How do you want it to be?"

Asuka inched closer in response, without any uncertainties and anxiety this time, and fitted her mouth into his.

* * *

~ xx 0 xx ~

* * *

After some moments which seemed to have lasted like hours, they both pulled back, almost a bit reluctantly. Osamu's face, which was only some inches away from hers, was blurry with tears, a sign that she'd let her wall of defense come crashing down. She had never thought that a few kisses would let her emotions errupt and pull her out of her shell like this. She didn't mean to cry, but she couldn't get the tears out of her eyes, no matter how many times she blinked.

As a duelist, she'd been told many times that she was brave and strong, but she knew she wasn't. Always, there were fears of failure and the dread of losing the ones she held dear haunting her. But here, before him, she didn't have to be strong. She didn't have to put on her Obelisk pride; she didn't need to be the Academy best female duelist. With Osamu, she could just be... herself. Someone who had weaknesses. Someone flawed.

Asuka wiped her tears with one hand after noticing his concerned look. She couldn't stop them from streaming down her cheeks, though. "I-I'm sorry."

Shaded by the growing darkness and dim lights from the lighthouse, the hazel orbs gently glinted."We should go," he announced in a low voice after studying her face. One hand moved to lightly touch her wet cheek.

"No. Not yet," she pleaded. Her voice was small and weak. She didn't look at him, staring at his shirt between her fingers instead. "Please."

Nodding slowly, Osamu pulled her closer to his chest and she rested her head against it.

Her heart ached when she remembered that she had to be apart from him, for who-knows how long, in just a matter of hours. But she quickly brushed off the thought and focused on his warmth and heart's beating instead. This was the benefit of being with Osamu: she didn't need words to communicate her feelings.

For once, she wished time could stop.


	7. The Dance and the Choice

**Chapter 7**

**The Dance and the Choice**

* * *

Time passed slowly in the silence that followed.

Night had fallen. But the world around Asuka consisted only of a strong pair of arms wrapped around her, steady rythm of Osamu's heart, the sound of waves crashing against the harbor, and the gentle breeze that swept her hair lightly. She didn't want to open her eyes or move from her comfortable position. Everything felt right and peaceful. And also kind of beautiful.

But reality was not going to be meek for too long. Time rolled on, and she knew she had to be apart with him after tomorrow's graduation ceremony. If she had been more honest with him and her own self, could this moment last longer? Probably.

She moved slowly from his chest without releasing her grip on his arm and stared into his dark eyes. They glowed red against the dim light in the dark. "We should go now," she said quietly. The party would start soon, and everyone would notice if she weren't present. How she despised her status as an unofficial duel madonna of the campus sometimes.

Osamu nodded, then smiled a little. "You're not really in the mood for it," he stated casually, brushing his fingers against her cheek.

Always reading her emotions as if they were naked in her face. She smiled back at him, aware of the heat rising up at his touch. "Too bad my mood and opinion don't count."

"Very selfless," he teased.

"You know I'm not."

"And neither am I." He leant forward to plant a soft kiss on her lips—which was too brief for her to return—before getting up to his feet. He hauled her up in one swift motion. "We'd better go now or you'd have to go to the ball with that uniform."

Asuka only smiled in return and tried not to speak. Words often failed her in situations like these, and she didn't want to ruin the moment. They walked hand in hand and climbed the stairs wordlessly. When they'd reached the higher ground where the road forked, Osamu released her hand and gestured towards the looming building some distance away. The dorm of Silfer Red was not far from where they were Asuka could already see the shadow of it. "I'll be going now. We'll meet at the main gate, then," he said. "I hope I still have something appropriate to wear."

Asuka chuckled at his remark. It was not a joke or a fake concern: Osamu had always been a casual dresser. His fair height and good looks were often concealed by plain clothing and a hat, making him almost unnoticable most of the time. Even _she_ wouldn't have been so conscious of his proportionate features if they hadn't spent the evening pressed against each other.

"I honestly don't really care if you planned to go like this," she said lightly. Wearing uniforms in a dance party was acceptable for male students—in fact, many Obelisk boys would. It was a different story for the girls, though. "You look just fine," she shrugged.

He grinned. "Yeah. But I guess I'm getting tired of wearing red all the time. And perhaps I could say the same to you."

"What do you mean?"

Osamu was already walking toward his dorm. "White suits you," he said with a faint smile. He didn't stop in his tracks and dissapeared at a corner.

* * *

~ xx 0 xx ~

* * *

Asuka had hurriedly walked to her dorm. Despite the regret of admitting her feelings late, she couldn't ease the smile plastered on her face. She never knew that having a quiet moment with a man could elate her like this.

Going straight to her room, she quickly bolted to the bathroom. But before she turned the shower on and tossed her white Obelisk uniform, she slowly brought it closer to her face and inhaled. His scent was there. Smiling to herself, she quickly took a shower.

After she'd dried herself with a towel, she opened her dresser to look for a formal dress to wear. She didn't have many—there wasn't really a need in bringing many dresses when you were living in an isolated island—but enough for her to stand idly for a few minutes with her hands skimming past the fabric.

What should she wear? It was going to be a dance party, so it had to be something that was easy to move in, she decided. Her choice fell on two garments: the first one was a short, navy blue dress with sleeves that reached her elbows, and the other was an identical pair of the first. Only it was white and had no sleeves.

She chose the second one.

Never in her life she dressed to please only one person instead to put up a good show. It felt a bit awkward and silly at first, but she didn't try to dismiss the thought when all she could think about was their shared moment at the port. So in the next twenty minutes, Asuka busied herself to prepare for the party: putting on a silver bracelet from her father, a matching neackle, and chose a pair of heeled pumps of the same colour. If it was going to be her last moment with Osamu, she would want it to be memorable for the both of them.

"Asuka-san," a voice called from the hallway. "Are you ready?" It sounded like Junko.

"We'll all be going in five minutes," said Momoe.

"Yes, just a minute." She threw one last glance at the mirror and breathed deeply. Her heart began to hammer again as she unconsciously recalled the feeling when his skin had come in contact with hers. _Calm down_, she said to herself. _Be reasonable and act like a woman your age. You're not a teen anymore._

She opened the door and saw Junko and Momoe standing in front of her. They both looked lovely in their own way: Junko had chosen a light pink dress, while Momoe was wearing a shorter pale blue one. Both of the girls looked at her wide-eyed from head to toe she almost squirmed under their gaze. "W-what is it?"

"You look _gorgeous_," breathed Momoe in awe.

Junko slowly nodded in agreement, her jaw dropping an inch, eyes assessing Asuka's features closely. "Yeah... I never thought you'd wear something so..." She trailed off, not finding the right word, it seemed.

"_Bold_," her friend put in.

"Bold," she agreed.

Asuka's cheeks got hotter at their comments. She wasn't sure if she should be embarassed or flattered. It was true, however, that the dress had left her back bare, not to mention that one end of the hem was shorter while the other side reached her knee. The fabric and conture of the dress exposed her upper body's curves in a tight fit.

"I..." She cleared her throat in an attempt to regain her composure. She could only hope her face didn't give away anything about her and Osamu. "Is there anything wrong in trying to look good for the last time in my school days?"

Junko grinned widely. "Absolutely not! You look very beautiful I'm sure all the boys would drool over you!"

"Stop it, idiot!" snapped Momoe with the same grin. "You're going to make her cheeks burn redder."

"But it's true!" said Junko. "Whoever gets to dance with you is a lucky guy indeed."

"I just hope he won't get a nosebleed or start to undress you in the middle of the dance," Momoe chirped.

"Both of you, please," Asuka sighed. She desperately tried to dismiss a vivid imagination of their fantasy, and succeeded only partially. "We should hurry or the others will leave without us."

The two laughed as they descended to the ground floor where every Obelisk girl had assembled. Asuka offered a polite, yet bashful smile to each everyone of them as they praised her looks.

They all walked in groups to the campus ground after the dorm leader told them that it was time. Momoe and Junko were busy discussing what Fubuki would wear while the others were chatting lightly among themselves: 'Who's your partner?' 'How do you see me with this dress?' and so on. Asuka stayed on some brief conversations although her mind was elsewhere. How would Osamu react upon her sight, she wondered. Would he praise her? Swallowing, she dismissied all thoughts of the endless possibilties and focused on the road instead.

After walking for a few minutes, they arrived at the main gate. Some boys were already there, either chatting or merely waiting patiently for their partners to arrive. As she'd guessed, around half of the Obelisk boys didn't bother to change. Their uniform symbolized their pride of being an Obelisk. Their reaction, though, was just as Junko and Momoe had predicted: most of the eyes fell on her upon their arrival. She tried her best to ignore all of them.

The girls around her scattered, each meeting their partners while some others heading straight to the main building. Asuka's eyes darted from one side to another to look for Osamu. He was nowhere to be seen. Was he late? What could be keeping him—

"Searching for someone?"

The familiar voice almost made her jump. She turned round to see Osamu standing just a few paces away from her.

He was wearing a simple black suit with a buttoned white shirt under it. A matching dark jeans and a pair of black shoes. He looked casual and nonchalant with his hands burried in his pockets, but something about him was definitely striking, especially when compared to his usual appearance with the red uniform on.

He looked taller in stature and more confident in black; more masculine, more elegant.

Charming, even.

"Do you need to scare me like that?" she asked, trying to control her heart's fastening rythm.

He lifted a shoulder. "It's a new hobby I find to be amusing." He walked closer to her and grabbed her by the waist, his eyes moved for a brief roam over her feature. Then, he smiled. "'Told you white looks good on you."

Asuka fought the strong urge to look away from him. Osamu chuckled, perhaps from reading her expression, and leant closer to whisper to her ear: "You're beautiful."

How she wished they were alone. So, rather than following her impulse and instinct telling her to pull his face against hers, she turned on her heels and motioned toward the campus building with a slight movement of her head. "We came to dance, didn't we? Let's get in, then."

"Yes, madam," he playfully replied.

She slipped a hand on his left arm and they both walked over to the dance hall.

Osamu was silent as usual, though by the faint smile he had on his face she could clearly tell that he was in a pleasant mood. It was rare for him to show his emotion so openly like that. But it infected her nontheless, as a smile quickly curled up on her lips. Their moments together were usually filled with discussions over Tag Duel strategies or small talks if not comfortable silences, and very recently, with deliberate movements of their bodies and lips. But she had never thought, even once, of having him as a partner for any formal occassions.

It felt as if their relationship had been made official. And she rather liked it.

The pair got into the vast room decorated with rich golden linens and red carpet. The chandelier was glowing brightly, showering the interior with its shimmering light. People had already filled the room by the time they'd arrived. Three main colors that usually filled the island had now multiplied into dozens of different ones.

Asuka noticed that some girls had stolen a look at them as they passed by—at Osamu, to be precise—and whispered among themselves, their expressions colored with disbelief and awe. No wonder, she thought. No one would even consider the tall young man to be attractive while he was wearing a Silfer jacket and a hat that covered almost half of his face. The change must be shocking for them as it had been for her.

Some of the boys in the room, on the other hand, threw him murderous looks. Well, that was, _if _looks could kill. But since they couldn't, Osamu simply walked away, unfazed by their intense glares.

"Do you want to drink?" he asked.

"Yes, please."

"I'll be back in a moment." He slipped his arm free from hers and walked over to a nearby table.

Asuka was about to look for familiar faces when about ten of Obelisk boys came to her. She blinked in surprise. "May I help you all?"

"Tenjouin-san," one of them started, "it's fine to tell us if you're threatened or being blackmailed, you know."

"Huh?" was all she could respond to the sudden remark.

Another one added, "Yeah. If you were being forced by that Silfer to be his partner, you could've just told us."

"Wait," a shorter student said. Judging by his appeaerance and huge glasses hanging loosely over his nose, he was a nerd. "It's rude to offer help without knowing what is truly happening. So, please tell us, Tenjouin-san, are you, in any way, being forced to attend this party as that Silfer's partner?"

"Or," the first student wondered aloud, "had that low-ranked student cheated you in a duel?"

Realization slowly dawned to Asuka as the Obelisks started to voice their concern and speculations. She was about to retort when Osamu came back with two glasses of juice. He immediately received cold, piercing glares from the small group that had half-circled around Asuka.

"What is this?" he asked, bewildered. "Is something wrong?"

"No," she quickly said, slipping her hand to his arm once again and dragged him away from the glaring Obelisks. After they were paces away, she weaved a sigh and shook her head.

Osamu offered the drink to her while his eyes still glancing sideways at the crowd. "What happened?" he asked without looking at her.

"Nothing." She took a sip of her drink, feeling tired all of a sudden. "You shouldn't concern yourself with them."

"All right..."

Asuka grabbed his arm to draw his attention back to her. She mustered a smile. "The dance will start soon. Should we move to the center now?" she said softly.

"Let's go."

The music started the moment they made their way to the dance floor, filling the room with slow, alluring melodies. Boys and girls began to pair up while others who chose not to dance or did not have a parnter stood at both sides of the room and enjoyed the drinks.

Osamu and Asuka faced up against each other. He took one of her hands in his while the other settled on her lower back. The sensation that was similar to electricity coursed through her skin once again, reminding her that she really needed to get used to his touch as fast as possible before her departure. There was no need to be bashful or anxious around him anymore now the smoke had already been cleared.

Every other couples had started to dance, and so had Osamu and Asuka. She let the music and his steady movement lead her when her eyes fell on the group of Obelisks that had approached her a moment before. They were standing near a large window at one side of the room, looking at them with tauted brows and angry scowls. She threw a glance to another side and spotted similar expressions written on some of the partnerless Obelisk boys' faces.

_That Silfer._

_Low-ranked student._

As she bitterly recalled the names they threw on Osamu, she felt a sudden surge of anger flowing through her veins. She disliked them. Why did they still bother to discriminate people based on the color of their uniforms on a day like this? If they really were true duelists, than they should know they couldn't measure people's capabilities by ranks alone. She remembered how some of them had commented sarcastically on his dueling skills. The Obelisk pride seemed to have corrupt some of them.

"Asuka?"

She snapped her head back to look up at him. "Yes?"

"Are you feeling unwell?"

"I-I'm all right." She tried to relax and inhaled. "Osamu... Aren't you... uncomfortable being called names and looked down upon?"

His brows lifted slightly. "Hmm? What's with the sudden interrogation?"

"I just want to know."

"No," he answered almost right away. "People can think and do whatever they want. They won't affect my performance on a duel anyway."

The logic suited him. And hers, sometimes. But this time, it was different. She couldn't help but becoming angry and uncomfortable at the unfair treatment he had to receive—more so when she seemed to be the cause of it. She felt guilty for all of this.

"Hey, are you sure you're all right?" he asked, clearly concerned by now. "You look a bit pale."

When they turned around in a slow motion, Asuka grasped the looks on the boys' faces again and anger bubbled up in her belly once again. She really hated them. She hated the looks in their eyes and her mind yelled out for herself to turn the table and fix things.

Then almost immediately, she pulled Osamu's head with one hand and pressed his lips against hers. She closed her eyes as soon as their lips made the slightest contact.

She could feel his breath being held in a gasp as their mouths collided and his body stopped moving, halting the dance.

Seconds seemed to pass like hours, then. Some shocked murmurs from people around her, as well as gasps and squeals, were audible. And they spread like wild fire across the room. Osamu was about to break free from the lip-lock, realizing that they'd drawn people's attention, but the arm that curved on the back of his neck didn't let him.

Asuka didn't pay any attention to the crowd anymore. Every sense she had felt then was being reduced into the single feeling of wanting on her lips. She'd been scared of this unknown feeling before. Scared of what she truly wanted, and at another side of herself that seemed to always scream for his scent and touch.

But now, she didn't have to feel that way: She knew what she wanted. She knew what she yearned for. And it was within her grasp. This time, she didn't have to deceive herself or conceal her feelings.

Slowly, she tilted her head to allow her to kiss him better, her other hand moved to pull him closer by the waist, closing the gap between their bodies. Osamu was still unmoving at first; he was probably taken aback by her sudden advance and tight grip. But when her bottom lip softly assessed his chin in a light tug, he bent his head and returned the kiss with his hands wrapped around her. His fingertips were cold against her bare skin it almost sent shiver to her spine.

The room went completely silent as the murmurs and chatters died down. Even without opening her eyes, she knew everyone was looking at them.

For a split second, embarassment overflowed her mind. Never she imagined she would kiss a man in front of this many people! More so in the school! But when the voices of the boys calling Osamu names rang in her head, she discarded every ounce of embarassment and shyness that had attacked her and let her mouth dig deeper into his, shutting everything except for his presence and the ecstatic feeling that were on the way to claim her mind and body.

_Let them watch_, she said to herself.

A sensastion that felt familiar, yet oddly foreign at the same time, was beginning to conquer her. She didn't resist it this time, and threw both arms over his shoulders to the back of his head, breaking the slow pace, sighing almost impatiently as they parted to gasp for air. She pressed his head down with her hands for kisses that seemed to be more urgent and insistent. She could feel him making a deep rumbling sound that resembled a growl.

She felt out of control, yet not wanting herself to stop.

Asuka realized that none of the bystanders should not be able to look at their faces by now, given how tightly she'd clutched onto him. She could feel Osamu's hair brushed against her face as he followed her pace and dropped the weight of his head down to hers.

After what seemed to be minutes, she finally withdrew her mouth from his, only a few inches away, while her hands stayed on both sides of his head to keep his forehead glued to hers. Her face should be red like hell, she thought, judging from the heat escalating to her cheeks, while Osamu was breathless. She noted that colors had risen up to his face as well. His expression remained solid, though, when he looked at her.

Cheers and loud noises of people clapping thundered through the hall. They were mainly from the girls. She risked a glance at the Obelisk boys and was satisfied to see the look on their faces. Her action, then, must had hit them hard. Just as she'd intended.

"King and Queen of the Prom!" shouted a student.

"Encore! Encore! Encore!" the crowd were beaming while clapping.

She could hear her name being chanted gleefully by the girls. The two, appearantly, had successfully stolen the spotlight tonight. Andrenaline coursed through her veins, making her unable to brush off the smile on her face. Asuka had never felt this kind of sensation without her duel disk and the holographic field on.

"Quite an uproar you've made," Osamu said. His breath, warm on her face, was filled with the scent of mint and musk.

She looked back at him, keenly aware of their proximity. The crowd was beginning to get louder. "I have never been a crowd pleaser," she admitted.

"Another similarity we share. But don't you think it's a bit rude to ignore them now?"

Asuka couldn't help but grin as he recognized the look in his eyes. Osamu was not smiling at all, but it was obvious he also felt what she felt. So, in one motion, they tightened their arms around each other and locked their lips together. Firmer and more confidently this time.

The effect on the crowd was almost immediate. They shouted and cheered, hollered and cried in excitement.

She never knew doing what the crowd demanded would be so self-pleasing. Their cheers, to which she'd associated with her opponents' losing moment or her own, was now pumping her blood. Being a madonna, then, was not so bad at all.

She pulled away from Osamu a moment later. While laughing to herself, she grabbed his hand and jogged out of the room, leaving the roaring crowds behind her. He was laughing, too, she realized, and it was the first time it sounded so carefree, high and pure.

Cold air blew on their faces soon after they were out of the building. They made a stop at the empty back yard and panted heavily, hands on knees.

After their laughter had ceased, they both straightened up and that was when Asuka realized that Osamu's hair was tousled. From the run, obviously, but also from the kiss that'd escalated in heat. She felt her cheeks burn hotter. She had let impulse and her own desires to claim her senses, making her unable to think before taking action.

"Now I demand answer: What was that for?" asked Osamu, still trying breathe normally.

Asuka filled her lungs with refreshing air and exhaled. Andrenaline rush stilled the smile on her lips. "A payback."

"Care to explain?"

Smile faded from her face. "I hate the way the treat you," she said while looking away. Her voice was hard. "They even asked me if I were forced to be your partner for the dance or if you had cheated on a duel against me."

Osamu opened his mouth to say something but decided against the idea and closed it. He sighed instead. A rueful smile was etched on his face.

"Was I wrong?" she asked reluctantly.

"They'd probably try to poison my breakfast tomorrow."

Oh. "Sorry..." She hadn't thought of the possibility her action would bring; only that she'd wanted to shut them up for once.

"Jealously is no simple matter, you see." One his hand moved to his hip as he relaxed. "Put yourself in their shoes for a change. Let's try an example: What would you do if you saw your crush kissing another woman in public?"

The thought of someone else kissing Osamu nauseated her it was as if she'd been kicked in the stomach. Asuka quickly dismissed the image away and dropped her gaze to the grassy ground, mumbling a low "I'm sorry."

He moved her chin upward. A corner of his lips quirked upward into a wry smile, his eyes were glittering with amusement. He leant closer, his face only some centimeters apart from hers. "But I guess you did show them an undeniable proof of my innocence."

Asuka gave a shaky laugh, her arms moved almost automatically to his shoulders. "Hopefully so."

Both of them were startled when a figure came to them, clapping. It turned out to be the Chancellor. They quickly separated themselves from each other and bowed their heads slightly to respect his presence.

"Ahh, that was an interesting show," the fat middle-aged man said in glee. "It's been a while since I last saw a crowd cheered like that outside a duel arena. Wait, I'm not interrupting the continuation, am I?" When the two were searching for words, he quickly added, "Don't worry. I'm going to leave as soon as I get what I've come to."

"May we ask what business you have with us, Sir?" asked Asuka politely. Deep down, she was afraid that they were going to be reprimanded for her brash action.

The Chancellor's eyes twinkled as his smile broadened. "Be at ease, Asuka Tenjouin, I'm not going to scold you or anything. I was kinda moved, actually." He laughed at his own joke, his hand wiping away a tear that wasn't there. Then again, maybe he'd been sincere with his words. Asuka couldn't say. It was, after all, _the _Chancellor. "And yes, I do have a business with the young lad here."

Osamu was characteristically silent; his face became serious.

"Have you considered of the options I've given to you?" the big man asked. His voice and eyes, although warm and kind, had this gravity of a man who was used to be in control.

Asuka threw her gaze at Osamu. _Choice_...? Could it be that Osamu had received some invitations too?

"I have," he replied after a moment of silence.

"Good! Mind to tell me of your choice?"

He closed his eyes for a moment, and when he opened them, they were determined. "I choose to enter the league."


	8. Taking Flight

**Chapter 8**

**Taking Flight**

* * *

"The league?" Chancellor Samejima beamed, sounding excited all of a sudden. "Ahh, you will definitely bring this academy an honor! With your skills, I'm sure you'll be able to make it to the top in no time!"

Osamu smiled politely, yet he said nothing. His gestures may seemed calm and content at a first glance, but Asuka knew him more than anyone else: he was getting uncomfortable.

"Now, perhaps I should contact them to inform that you'll be joining the upcoming tournament as their representative," he said after nodding briskly to himself. "Come to my office tomorrow before the ceremony, will you?"

"I will," replied Osamu.

After the fat man had gone back to the school building, the two fell silent. Osamu seemed thoughtful, as he usually did, but Asuka could feel her heart sinking to her belly by each of its beat. She'd prepared herself for this: for them to part ways—but the moments they had spent this evening had deluded her. Tomorrow everything was going to be different as they would pursue their own careers and lives. It was pretty naive—if not greedy or childish—of her, but she had wished that reality would present them with more chances.

The turn of events in this one day had turned her life and expectations upside down. She wanted to spend more time with him, even if it was just a bit more, and deeply regretted of the days she had wasted by confusing over her own feelings and affection. Now that the smoke had finally been cleared out, only a few hours remained for them.

To Asuka's surprise, Osamu had shown more of his true self in these past four hours. Not only his old persona had returned, but he'd spoken and acted more openly around her. Every bit of change that was occuring to him did nothing but to intrigue her more: she wanted to know him more; she wanted to hear him laugh more; talk to him more.

"Asuka," he called.

She looked up to him and blinked. Osamu smiled at her.

_Smiled_.

If there was another thing she'd realized during the short time they'd spent as a couple, it was him smiling more often. _Far_ more often, she meant, and far more genuine. There were usually layer upon layer of mystery in his eyes and smiles that concealed everything he thought and felt. But now, it was as if he were slowly opening up. _To her_. Asuka wondered of how many more things she had not known about him.

"Do you want to go somewhere?" he asked. "Well... You know, it's kinda impossible for us to go back to the hall again."

_Anywhere._ As long as she got to be with him.

Asuka closed her eyes for a moment, trying to sort her thoughts and emotions rather than thinking of a quiet place to go. "What about the rooftop?" she mused aloud. She opened her eyes and saw Osamu's eyes glinted in a questioning manner. "I... kind of want to see the whole island from a high place. For the last time."

He nodded and took her hand. "Let's go, then."

They walked to the building and took the closest elevator. Once they'd arrived to the highest level, they took the stairs that led them to the vast rooftop. As Asuka ha expected, there was nobody there, and the she had to be thankful that the sky was clear so she could see their surroundings clearly. The island was a beautiful sight from this height: she could see the volcano and forest at the far end of one side, and also the black ocean glistening below.

The air was colder, and she finally realized that the short dress was revealing more of her skin than her usual Obelisk attire had. A faint dust of pink crept to her cheeks as she recalled her friends and Osamu's compliment.

Osamu led her to the overlooking platform located slightly below the highest ground. He let go of her hand there, and turned to face her, his expression becoming less guarded than usual. "You like it here?"

Asuka found it hard to look at the beautiful view of the island with him so close, but she tried to relax and cast a glance to admire it nontheless. "Yes."

"I haven't talked about you about my decision, have I?" he said, turning to rest his hands at the safety bars, his eyes gazing distantly to the darkness. "It was after you 'scolded' me."

And after she'd rejected Jun's love for her. Asuka kept silent.

"I hadn't been really sure of myself before," he said. "Pathetic you may call me, but I had actually no desire to continue being a duelist."

She had a hard time to swallow in his words this time. Osamu? Retiring as a duelist? "But why?" she asked. "You are a more skilled duelist than I—"

Osamu gave a short laugh that died as soon as it was produced. "Skills, skills, skills and skills... I wonder what they really matter sometimes." He shook his head. "No, it was not because I doubted my skills in dueling. It was that I had no desire to duel anymore. Not after what I've seen and experienced in the other dimension. But then you came to slap me out of my own misery." He'd turned to face her, his gaze visibly softening. "You pulled me out from the mud of self-pity I've let myself been drowned into and made me see the world as it is again."

Her heart began pounding as he closed the distance between them, she hoped her smile didn't waver. "So it was then you rushed to the Chancellor's office to accept the league's invitation?"

"Yeah..." He reached to her cheek with one hand, then gently pushed some strands of her hair away from her shoulder. "Why, I wonder, did you care?"

The answer was already ringing in her head, but she found them gurgled at her throat.

"You don't need to answer it," said Osamu after reading her expression, chukling. He took a step back and lifted a shoulder. "Now don't let me preoccupy you; you wanted to enjoy the view right? You'll be leaving earlier than I, after all."

Asuka laughed at that, and pulled him closer by the wrist, ignoring her fastening heartbeat and slight nervousness arousing. When, she wondered, she'd be able to attach to him naturally without being anxious? Gods, she had spent countless of time with him in the past, though may be not as a lover. Shouldn't that have been enough?

But then again, minus the 'show' at the dance—where she'd let her instincts and lust taken control over her actions—she could easily number the times when she had actually treated him with affection. And consciously, to be noted.

"I wanted to." She leaned her back against him, guiding his hands to her waist. "But I shall put the blame on you: you're very distracting."

"Huh. I should be the one to say so," he said. His body felt warm on her skin, and the cold air was no more. Osamu slightly tilted his head to look at her. "How come I never saw you with this dress?"

Ceremonies before and after tournaments plus some yearly parties were the only occassions when she got to dress formally. She could feel her face slightly getting warmer and was glad that they were not facing each other. "Well, this is the only white short dress I have brought here. I thought that wearing white on formal events would not make much of a difference from what I usually wear..."

"Oh? Am I getting the right hunch?" he playfully asked.

Asuka raised a shoulder in a mock-defense. "You prefer me dancing in a uniform, then?"

"What—compared to this? Despite my looks, I still have some sense of fashion too, you know."

She laughed at that. "We'll see."

Osamu didn't say anything, perhaps letting himself to be drowned in the comfortable silence that stretched, and so did Asuka. She tried to memorize the night view with each blink, feeling the cool, gentle breeze caress her face, knowing that this could be the last chance she would get to enjoy in the island. She had thought of the island as a cage sometimes, and on happier occassions, as home.

She had disliked the place at first: thinking that she'd served her purpose enrolling to the Academy the first time she'd been informed that her rank as a duelist had risen up to the top ten. Pride and comfort zone created by the ranking system had slowly corrupted her love for dueling.

Though thankfully, her loss against two certain Silfer students had successfully slapped her hard. Judai was the person who had taught her to enjoy dueling from the heart rather than to merely seek victory. But Osamu was the one who had accompanied her in her selfish quest to find her purpose and self-worth as a duelist, and much later on, as a person.

"Osamu," she quietly called after being lost in thoughts for a while.

"Hmm?"

She hesitated, but then chose to voice her concern. "What do you think will happen from now on?"

Osamu shifted his weight to one feet as he pondered. "Each of us will pursue our own dreams, I guess. I will participate in tournaments under a sponsor and aim to go pro, and so will the others who choose the same path as I do." He paused, then added, "While we do so, you will resume your study and undoubtedly become one of their best duelists in no time. "

"That's very reassuring, coming from someone who' beaten me in one turn," she chukled. "But that's not what I meant. Duelling under a sponsor means you'll have limited liberty and free time, right?" Which would only mean that they were likely not going to see each other for a long while.

"Yeah..." He then descended his head to the side of hers, lips touching her skin. "You're overthinking things, Asuka."

"An old habit of mine," she admitted. "Hey... Do you mind if we stayed here until the party's over?"

"Didn't you just say that I'm very distracting?"

"And that is good," she said, deciding to play along, "since I'm in need of distractions."

* * *

~ xx 0 xx ~

* * *

The next day, Asuka had woken up early in the morning to pack her belongings. Her ship was scheduled to arrive at three—so she practically had no time to dawdle in the island. Most of the students were going to board the ships that would carry them to the Domino City, the only exceptions were her, who was going straight to the airport, and a small few who chose to enter the leagues. This setup would only mean that she would leave earlier than Osamu, and that they would have very little time together after the ceremony.

She'd spent the night talking with him, reminiscing over the past and discussing their future plans. It had been heart warming to be able to converse freely with him. Osamu had rarely discussed his thoughts and feelings with anybody, so she had been secretly delighted when he'd told her of his doubts and fears. She had earned his trust. And that thought brought an automatic faint smile upon her lips.

Now, along with the other Obelisk students, she was standing in the grand hall of the Academy, listening to a round of speeches delivered by the tutors and the Chancellor to close their final year as students.

Clad in her Obeliks Uniform for the last time, Asuka was secretly glad that she didn't stand out as much as she had last night. Well, she was _still _receiving different kind of stares from the students, but at least none of the boys dared to approach her in a flirtatious way again. And who would?—after witnessing what she'd done last night.

Trying to suppress the growing embarassment, she closed her eyes and told herself to be calm. _There is still the speech_, she reminded herself. _Don't embarass yourself before you even step onto the podium._

Yes. She'd been asked to deliver a speech by the teachers to represent the Obelisk students. It was actually quite predictable, since she'd attained the highest score in almost every field of the examination.

"...We are all feel honored, as teachers of this Academy, to see you mature as capable duelists," the Chancellor carried on with his speech. His voice was thick with emotion despite the usual warm, easy-going expression he was wearing.

"There are many paths to prove yourselves as ones, and the choice you've made three years ago to enroll here is finally going to open up more paths for you to take," he said, and paused for a drammatic effect while scanning the crowd before him. His gaze met Asuka's, and his smile broadened. "There are, though, some of you who've proven themselves as our best duelists and chosen to spread their wings by going abroad. Among them are Edo Phoenix and Asuka Tenjouin." He gestured to both Asuka and Edo to come up to the podium, to which a round of applause soon followed in their trail.

The went up to the podium while nodding politely to the teachers standing behind it. Edo was the first to speak. The Chancellor nodded at them and stepped back to give him some room.

Edo addressed the teachers and former students with formal greetings. Then he began to speak, his deep voice carrying easily across the hall. Edo had always been a polished performer, there was no question about it. He was, after all, someone who was used to cameras, interviews and big tournaments. His speeh was not long; it consisted fairly of his opinion that all people had varying skills, especially in dueling, and his gratitude of being able to learn the true meaning of being a duelist at heart. After ten minutes of talking, he formally closed it by expressing his joy of being a learner in the Academy.

As the silver-haired duelist stepped back, Asuka's heart began to race. She closed her eyes briefly and told herself that it was no different than dueling in a stadium, then lifted her face and took the place Edo had left.

Faces before her showed varrying kinds of expression. Asuka cleared her throat quietly while searching for familiar faces among them. "To be honest," she began, "I never thought I would make it this far." She paused for a while. "Many things have happened in just three years. In this Academy, as well as in my short moment as a student here." She spotted her friends' faces and felt a bit lighter as they acknowledged her remark with smiles and nods.

"For me, dueling was some kind of a competition," she continued. "I'd loved it as a child, but in some point, it had become more like a must to me, as winning had preoccupied my mind so. I even thought that entering a duel academy wouldn't change things, but I was wrong."

Finally, she was able to spot Osamu. He was standing at the far back of the lines, his usual red uniform had already been replaced by a simple white jacket with a branded league logo on it—a sign that he'd already fulfilled his promise to meet the Chancellor this morning. The old fat man seemed to have forced him into wearing the jacket to signify his achievement despite his low academic rank as a Silfer, a good will to regard one of his best duelists for the last time. Even from afar, she knew he was smiling at her, and Asuka instantly felt more relaxed.

"The people I've met showed me that duel is more than just about winning and competing your deck against your opponent's. It is far deeper than merely a calculation of Life Points. It is about respecting your opponents, and learning to explore yourself better. Well, spare me if I seemed to be always oblivious to my surroundings when dueling"—a chorus of laughter swept across the room, each student recalling the fact that she had simply _never_ regarded the crowds whenever she dueled—"but there is more than just a burst of satisfaction flooding the mind when winning or a sickening urge to recompose your deck when losing. My friends taught me that dueling is about sharing your feelings and burdens, not with just your partners, but also opponents.

"Up until now, I've always felt like a little bird who was scared to fly on its own. There was always fear of failures and uncertainties that halt me. But then, I realized that no birds are designed to stay rooted to the ground. Yet no duelist is able to take flight alone. I learned that from my loses against those I've misjudged, and also from those whom I've looked up to."

The backs of the people she had pursued this far had told her the lesson. Ryo, Fubuki, Judai, Osamu and her adversaries had taught her different lessons through dueling, shifting her focus from seeking victories into deepening her understanding and emotions.

"There is nothing wrong in being afraid, someone has told me," she continued. Her gaze met Osamu's once again, and a faint smile settled on her face. "It was then that I chose to unfold my wings and challange the world once again. I know there is more beyond all of this, and I'm just grateful I've chosen to enroll here. If anything, this academy is a starting point for me, and I am proud to be able to stand here with all of you as a duelist."

She dipped her head slightly to end the speech, and a warm round of applause was awarded to her.

* * *

~ xx 0 xx ~

* * *

Half an hour after the ceremony was particulary a very busy moment for every student. They had to transfer their belongings to the ships, make sure that their flights were properly booked, and exchange farewells to the teachers and people staying in the island. Like others, Asuka'd spent the next two hours walking back and forth from her dorm to the dock and then back to the main building again and again. She, after all, would depart sooner than most of the students. And the fact that a light, spring rain had chosen the very time to shower the island was not helping her to speed up all the chores waiting to be done at all.

So, after everything had settled into place, she quickly doned a jacket to fight down the cold air and went out to the harbor, where she and Osamu had agreed to meet just a moment before her departure. Her tight schedule didn't seem to be any kinder to her in these last minutes, it seemed. She mentally sighed.

Asuka was half-running along the road leading to the east part of the island, her umbrella shielding her from the gentle, cold drops of rain, when she finally spotted Osamu among the few people loitering about the harbor from a higher ground. He was not alone, and Asuka's heart almost skipped a beat when she finally realized who was the man Osamu was talking to. She could make out the faintest curl of semi-long brown hair behind a blue umbrella. It was her brother, Fubuki.

She stopped in her tracks then proceeded slowly along the stairs. She could not make out what they were talking about since they were too far away from her earshot, but from the serious expressions they were wearing, she knew they were talking about _her. _Despite her brother being the second closest person to her after Osamu, Asuka had never discussed her feelings for the Silfer to Fubuki before. It just sounded silly and not right. And if possible, she wouldn't risk a chance for him to tease her about Osamu—she had enough of his daily nonchalant chatters already.

As if to make things worse, she was sure Fubuki had been at the dance hall yesterday and had seen everything. How would you react if you saw your little sister kissing someone hungrily in public? She tried not think of it.

The two of them turned to greet her the moment they had finally aware of her closing in to where they were. Osamu gave her a meaningful look, while Fubuki's rare-to-be-seen serious expression was fading away, soon replaced by a grin that almost looked forced on his otherwise good-looking face.

"Hi, little sister," he greeted, his tone cheerful as usual. But Asuka was not going to be fooled: she knew he was anxious. Her brother had always been a terrible actor and liar.

She lifted an eyebrow, trying to look as casual as possible. "Here to see me off, Nii-san?"

"I planned to," he said with a shrug. "But since I'd be playing over to your college quite often in the future, perhaps that wouldn't be so necessary."

Fubuki had been offered to come as a guest duelist for the next tournament that was going to be held at her college, which meant they were going to see each other a lot in the next few months. "Very practical of you," she lightly commented.

"That's me." He eyed Osamu for a second, then back to look at Asuka with an uncertain smile. "Well, your kind brother will not going to disturb you two now. See you soon, Asuka. And you, too." He nodded at Osamu and winked at his sister before walking away, taking the route leading straight to the Obelisk Dorm.

Asuka turned to face Osamu, trying to read his expression carefully, searching for any signs discontent. The last thing she wanted to happen is having her big brother dissaproving of their relationship. "Did he... say anything strange to you?"

But Osamu simply laughed. "If a _serious_ 'take-care-of-my-sister-talk' from him is considered strange, then yes."

Asuka threw her glance at the dissapearing Fubuki and hid a sigh of relief. Her brother, she knew, had always been a little too protective of her sometimes—in his own way, of course.

"Come," said Osamu, breaking her reverie, and took her hand. He led her to the back of a nearby soterhouse a the far end of the harbor where it was far quieter. The high walls of the storehouses shielded them from passbyers' sight. Once there, he dropped his umbrella and pulled her closer without a word and wrapped his arms around her. Asuka didn't question the sudden movement and let herself be bathed in the gentle drops as she loosed hers. Her umbrella fell with a soft thud to the ground.

They were going to part soon, and she wanted to savour his scent and warmth before it happened. She closed her eyes and let her body melt into his, trying not to think of anything but him.

They just stood embracing for a moment, each drinking in the other's presence. Osamu was the one who broke the silence. "I haven't told you about how I came to my decision," he said. "I owe it to you."

Asuka shifted a bit in his arms so she could look at his face. He was smiling. "Me?"

"Yes." He closed his eyes as he breathed in. "Despite the lessons I've learned, I've done so many mistakes in these past three years. One of which I truly regret was my inability to trust the people I've called friends. I was too focused on myself this whole time, blind from the reality." He paused, and Asuka could feel his arms tightening around her as he lowered his head into her wet hair, warming her neck with his breath. "But _you_ stayed with me. You forgave me, even when I'd hurt you."

Words flickered in her mind but none came to her lips. She'd never thought Osamu as someone who would express his feelings _and_ affection through words, so when he did, she wasn't sure how to respond.

"You taught me how to trust others, how to enjoy things as they are," he continued, "and also how to be honest with myself."

Slowly, she let one hand trailed up to the side of his face. She gently pulled away from him without withdrawing her hand, and stared up into his eyes. They were tender, and also full of emotions. Only twice she had seen such look: when she had reunited with her brother, and when he had first kissed her. Osamu slightly pressed his head into her caress, rubbing his cheekbone against her palm, eyes closing. Her heart was deceptively beating in a steady rythm, but she could feel the heat escalating to her cheeks.

"Being honest with yourself doesn't mean that you have to reveal everything to others," she quietly said, brushing her fingers against his wet cheek with tenderness and newfound familiarity. "There are scars that take longer time to heal, and no one would rush you to tend them right away. You can take your time, Osamu."

He smiled at her words and stared back at her. "This is what I meant." Asuka slightly tilted her head in wonder, which earned her a chuckle from Osamu. "You are the only person to have said that to me," he said. "You didn't look at me like a failure or a reject despite my mistakes. You kept on trusting me as a partner."

Asuka laughed a little. "That's what a partner is supposed to do, right?"

His smile became rueful. "Spare me. I've been nothing but a blind man."

"A blind man doesn't turn to face his fears and acknowledge his weaknesses. You didn't linger in the pit of self-pity and chose to discard your blindfold."

"I might have," he murmured. "And I think I might want to be honest with you."

Slowly, he leant his head closer to her; Asuka instinctively closed her eyes and slowed her breathing. But before his lips came in contact with hers, Osamu whispered the words she had been longing to hear and say—yet too afraid to acknowledge. She smiled and chanted them back without hesitation this time, then slid her arms around his neck, gently drawing him an inch closer to seal the words.


	9. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

* * *

"The number you are calling is—"

At the sound of the monotone voice, Osamu quickly pressed the end call button and folded his cellphone.

Sighing inwardly, he shoved his cell into his pocket and chose to enjoy the ride to the hotel in silence.

Life had been busy in these last few weeks, he mused while letting his elbow rest against the car's window. Osamu had thought that his life as a pro duelist would mainly consist of dueling, but he had been wrong. Well, the guess _had _been right in the first few months of his initation, but after rising up in rank and winning several tournaments, everything had gradually changed. Attending formal parties and duel ceremonies, opening grand tournaments as a guest duelist, being interviewed on a daily routine, and going to one place after another to promote dueling were on his unofficial job description now.

He glanced at the scenery to admire the city lights from the high way. Deciding that he would need a refreshment, he proceeded to open the window and let the wind caress his face, blowing his chesnut hair. If felt nice and cold against his skin. The weather was getting colder since it was already autumn in this region, and Osamu wondered if he could make it back to the city again before winter.

Schedules had been very harsh on him lately, but since he had been assigned to the very place where Asuka was, he hadn't complained about it. What bothered him was the wait. He had to practically become an obedient dog for half a year until his rank and reputation had risen—finally bearing fruits for the league who had sponcored him. One year of waiting had been like ages for his part.

"We've almost arrived, sir," the driver who had been assigned to him called out from the front seat.

He straightened and massaged stiff muscles. "Already?"

"You were dozing off again, I presume?" he lightly asked. The driver, a fat middle-aged man with a short gray hair named Stahn, was a warm, friendly soul. He greatly reminded Osamu of a certain headmaster. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems like they're drilling you like crazy lately. How long have you slept yesterday?"

"About three or four hours," he replied, already fighting down a yawn at the mention of the word 'sleep.'

Stahn shook his head empathetically. He, after all, was among the few people Osamu had gotten close to outside work and business. "I'm sure you don't need me to tell this to you, but health is important in a career like yours. You don't want to faint during an interview or fall during formal occassions, do you?"

The young duelist heaved a sigh. Must _everyone _comment on his health? He'd been told that he looked like a zombie by his assistants earlier this day, and certainly, he did not need a reminder. "I know, I know... I'll try to rest as soon as I get back."

"You'd better do, or you'll have panda-eyes by tomorrow. Just rest and enjoy the night for now."

Osamu raised a questioning brow at his last remark, but the driver simply shrugged it off and chuckled to himself. The sedan stopped in front of the hotel's front door and Osamu got out after thanking the ever-smiling man.

One privilege of being a pro duelist with a renowned sponsor supporting—or rather, enslaving—you is only the accomodation they provided you with. He entered the large building and stopped at the luxurious lobby to scan the people there. Asuka was nowhere to be seen. He had given her the number of his room and a copy of his identification code in case they couldn't meet as they had planned before.

Maybe she was unable to come, he guessed. Her college, he knew from their occassional talk via mails and phone, tended to shower their first and second year students with assignments before finally screening them individually for tournaments. It wasn't very typical for a duel college to have such a curriculum, but it could at least boast of their success by producing capable duelists year after year.

Taking the elevator straight to the tenth floor, he tried to reach Asuka once again. And once again he tried, once again he had to be dissapointed. Her cell seemed to be off, or maybe she was just in an unreachable area.

The elevator arrived with a 'ding', and he stepped out with a tired mind. Everything could wait, then, he thought as he made his way to his room, after he had a nice, undistrubed sleep. He could try to contact her again tomorrow morning. After all, he still had five more days in the city—though today was the only Saturday they were going to get. Producing a card key from his pokcet, he swiped it onto the device to his door and it clicked open.

He entered the suite room and walking straight to the kitchen, ready to grab for anything stored in his refrigerator—gods, even a cold water would be welcome, his throat felt so sore as tiredness invaded his mind. But before his feet carried him further, he stopped in his tracks and realized something was amiss.

The lights and the room warmer were on. And he still held the card.

Supposedly, he had to enter the card into a mini-device to turn on the electricity. Was there another card...? Before he could turn around to inspect the device at the front door, a pair of arms seized his waist from behind, almost making him jump in shock.

"What the—" he gasped as some weight on his back forced him to stumble forward and fell to the large cushion on the carpet.

But then a soft, familiar giggle broke, and it was then he realized who it was.

"Asuka," he breathed. Her arms loosened to let him turn to face her.

It was her, all right. An automatic smile was etched on Osamu's face the moment he saw her face.

They had, of course, informally 'met' through video calls numerous of times, and Osamu had been sure that she had not changed at all. But looking at her in flesh changed the thought, as he assessed her features and realized how one year had slightly matured her in appearance. Her hair was still kept in the same haircut, only it was a bit longer and has soft curls that hadn't been there before. She was wearing a white tight-fitting tank top and shorts that exposed her feminine curves and long legs perfectly.

He hadn't fallen for her because of her looks—if anything, he'd counted them as a bonus—but as a man, he couldn't help but to admire them every time he had the chance.

"You almost gave me a heart attack," he said finally as he shifted to give her some space on the cushion.

Asuka laughed—the sound high and naturally rythmed, instantly relieving Osamu of his fatigue. "That was your greeting after one year?" she playfully asked.

He leant in response, one hand cupping her cheek, and brushed her lips softly with his. His skin flared into electrical awareness at the slide of her lips on his, and the intention of keeping the lip contact brief faded away when a familiar sensation he had forgotten since their last moment together began to grow inside him.

Osamu pulled her back on instinct so she lay on top of him, making her long brown hair fell down on him, brushing his face slightly. He could smell the fresh scent of her shampoo and lillac in her parfume. His sore muscles were long forgotten then—reminding him of how long they had been apart. He kissed her neck, then back to her mouth, feeling a bit lost in the scent of her. Her hands slid around his neck beneath his jacket, a prickling sensation against his bare skin, to ensure that they didn't have to break free as she fell on his side.

And then what had begun so gently took its own life: he could hear her sigh softly into him as they were pressed to one another; they tasted each other deeply with an eagerness fueled by craving and longing as if testing the edge of their passion.

Osamu wondered, for a brief moment, if heat and electricity should always follow each time their skin touch whenever they were sharing a moment like these. Their kisses were deep and urgent, yet familiar all at once.

After a while, they both pulled back, just a few centimeters apart. Colors had risen up to her cheeks when she looked at him, her pupils dilating. Her breaths warmed his face with each draw.

They just lie there for some minutes, with their eyes focused on each other without feeling the need to communicate with words. Such was something he had been fond of sharing with her: silences. Osamu blinked slowly, with his hand still settled on her waist, and admired how the lights fell and reflected on her fair skin and brown hair, creating shades of golden.

Then the hand that was resting behind his ear moved to brush his cheek gently. "Ten points for me for sneaking up on you," she said, smiling.

Osamu snorted a laugh. "I didn't know we were keeping scores. How did you get inside?"

Her smile widened as it turned into a playful one. She drew herself closer to press her mouth gently into his before getting up. She went into the kitchen. Osamu sat up.

"I simply gave your room number and ID, and then called a certain someone to identify myself to the management."

Stahn. She must've called him to speak with the hotel's front desk to ensure that she was the very person whom she'd identified herself as. The driver's last remark, which was filled with jovial hints, resounded in Osamu's mind. He shook his head, laughing as he took off his jacket and tossed it to the sofa's armrest, then rested his back against it. Asuka had never ceased to amuse him. And this was the first time _she_'d pulled some trick on _him_.

She came back with two cans of soda, and she gave one to him before settling to sit by his side, resting her body easily against his. Osamu opened the can with one hand and took a gulp, silently grateful that he finally got the chance to wet his dry throat. He emptied it slowly and placed the can on the table at his side. Asuka, who was watching him, then chose the moment to voice her concern: "You look restless."

"Things have been quite busy in these past two weeks," he admitted. "There are some important events chained in a row. I even thought I should demand a salary increase next month."

She gave away a faint sympathetic smile as she took a sip. "You should rest while you have the chance. You don't have work tomorrow, right?"

"No." He paused, then amended the statement. "Not _yet_."

"I checked what's in your fridge, you know," she said, a warning in her tone. "You should eat more than just bread and canned meat."

Osamu winced. He had long lost his apetite over a healthy diet after he'd found out what kind of nightmare his shcedule could become, which led him into a pretty bad style of life by merely having a proper meal twice or thrice a week. Frozen and canned food fell into choice as he preferred an extra minute of sleeping over spending his precious time in the kitchen to cook. "Maybe I would—once things have calmed down a bit."

"Hey, is it that hard to buy some fresh meal after work?"

He had sometimes asked Stahn to buy him cooked meal from vendors or restaurants, but after his fatigue had trigerred his allergic to some types of food, he stopped. He was wise enough not to inform her of that and simply nodded in reply. "All right. I'll do it next time. So, how are things in the college?" he asked, trying to change the subject before she could dig about his unhealthy lifestyle any further. "Still flooded by papers and tests?"

"Yes," she sighed. "But since I'll be in my second year by next month, they'll die out eventually and change into deck building and dueling curriculum instead. I just have to survive until then."

"Sounds tough."

She shook her head, a faint smile of self-satiscation curled her lips. "I'm quite enjoying it, actually. The air of competition is thicker here, and I guess I kinda like it. It makes me feel challanged," she shrugged.

There was nothing wrong with the college; it was just the curriculums at the Duel Academy had been too easy for her, he thought.

"Do you know that we've been given an assignment to build a deck against yours?"

"What?" he said, genuinely taken aback by the information.

She laughed at his expression. "I see someone is not used being a celebrity yet."

"I always, _always_ hate seeing my face on the media," he muttered under his breath, scowling. And were people supposed to be happy to see a large poster that had their face zoomed in every corner? Man, he could never understand their common sense.

Asuka put her soda aside and touched his cheek, an amused look etched on her face. "Get used to it, then. Have more confidence in yourself."

"It's easy to have confidence in a duel. But outside the duel field, no. Unlike _you_, I'm not used at being pried on without my duel disk equipped."

"You're not comfortable with _me_ looking closely at you?"

He eyed her, growing alarmed by the glitter in her eyes. "Since when do you find teasing me to be an entertainment?"

Asuka threw a playful smirk and leaned back into him. "A new hobby, you can say."

Somehow, he couldn't help but to think that she'd picked the traits from him. He would, in normal situations, counter them by playing along. But his mind was too tired for that right now, and he meant it when he'd said that he hated to see himself on the media.

"So, I conclude that everything's going well?"

"It is tiring, but I think it's paid off. I've learned many things in just a few months," she added after pausing. "Most of the students there are also skilled duelists, so I can learn much even when I'm not in class."

"Which means you've made the right choice, then."

Asuka's eyes became distant at the remark. She had had a hard time deciding over her future when they had only been a few days from graduation day. He recalled how troubled she had been during those days, so he chose to break the thick air of nostalgia. "Let me call Stahn to buy some food," he said as he rose to his feet.

It was then he realized that Asuka had been right: he was restless. His steps were heavy and his head became foggy. His personal agenda had dictated him to hit the bed as soon as he'd gotten into his room, but it had been neglected due to a pleasant surprise waiting for him there.

Realizing this, Asuka grabbed his arm in mid-tracks, fixing him a look, her brow slightly tauted in concern. "You really should rest, Osamu. It doesn't take a doctor to tell that you've not slept much in these last few days."

This. Again. Osamu tried to open his mouth to reply, but she was quicker. "Don't let me make you uncomfortable," she softly said. But when he didn't comply, she shot him a sharp look. "Do I have to drag you to your room?"

At that, he gave up and breathed deeply. He'd forgotten that Asuka could be very intimidating if she wanted to. And even if he'd wanted to resist, he didn't have the strength to debate. "Fine," he said as he squeezed his eyes shut. Diziness took over then, followed by a heavy feeling of drowsiness.

They made a way to the bedroom, and once there, he didn't bother to think nor did anything but to throw himself onto the mattress. Asuka sat at the edge. He could spot tenderness glowing in the hazel orbs despite the minimum lighting in the room.

"You drove me to bed like a child," he said, keeping his tone serious, "now I demand a bedtime story."

"A spoiled child, I'd say," she grinned while shoving her hair behind a shoulder as she leant closer. "And what makes you think I would comply?"

He eased himself into a more comfortable position and closed his eyes, thankful for the calming darkness. "A spoiled child always gets what he wants."

She laughed a little, but decided to play along nontheless. "Once upon a time, there lived a young knight..."

"In shining armour?"

She looked thoughtful for a moment. "Not anywhere near shiny, since he rarely checked up his own equipments—not to mention he had never cared of what he wore either."

"Hey, we have fashion designers in the league. They pick the clothes for every duelist on stage."

"That, and he was also very stubborn and witty, not to mention sarcastic and light-headed," she continued, as if not hearing his complaints. "One day, when he was out on a patrolling duty in the borderline, he got himself hurt by falling from his horse."

He opened one eye to look at her, skeptical. "And how could a trained knight fall off from his horse?"

"Ah. I forgot to add that he was also a sleepy-head."

He grunted at that. "I guess it was then our good-for-nothing knight was found by a passing young woman—who happened to be a princess from a neighboring kingdom."

Asuka lifted one shoulder casually, accepting the 'princess' spice into the storyline. "The princess, out of good will to help the wounded knight, then brought him to her castle and introduced him to the fair king ruling the kingdom."

"And I assume the princess had a secret agenda behind her noble action?"

She laughed then faked a frown. "True enough. Well, you see, her kingdom was caught up in a turmoil against another kingdom, whose lord seek to conquer her father's. One thing that had caught her attention was the knight's sword, which seemed to be refined and cared for. From the simple observation, she deduced that the knight might be of an astute fencer."

At the point, it was clear what the story would be like. Osamu smiled to himself in the darkness.

Asuka hadn't been interested in him except for his dueling skills at first, he knew, and eversince she'd lost a duel against him and Judai, she had been practically running after him on every possible occassion in order to seize either him or Judai as a sparring opponent—and much later on, as a Tag Duel partner. They had argued a lot during their first season as duel partners, with each commenting on the other's flaws and style of dueling. It hadn't been for long though, since a series of events had come up.

Dreadful as they might have been, Osamu was secretly thankful for them. Because it had been at those times that he'd gotten to understand dueling better, and looked at her in a different light.

"The knight chose to help defend the kingdom from the evil lord, even managed to get the king's son to return to the kingdom after being imprisoned by the enemy for years." She paused, glancing down at Osamu as if expecting him to throw in some comments. To which he did.

"Why do I get a feeling that you would hook me at the end of the tale?" His hand trailed up to skim on her hair. He said, "So, then the princess fell for the knight?"

Her smile grew as she moved closer and placed a kiss on his forehead that lingered for a moment before replying, "That is to be saved for the next session."

"Figures."

"Now rest," she ordered as she settled into a sitting position beside him, leaning her back against the wall. Long fingers ran through his short hair.

Osamu breathed in slowly, feeling his muscles and brain complying to the order right away. He closed his eyes while savouring her warmth and the light scent of her parfume. They were relaxing him, and he was thankful for her company; She was a soothing presence in the darkness.

A faint feeling of appreciation twitched the corners of his lips at the thought. The next second, he could feel the darkness looming around him taking over his sight and consciousness, shifting the balance of reality and dream.

Perhaps for once, he would be able to sleep soundly.

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~ xx 0 xx ~

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**_A/N : _**_Finally, the Epilogue I promised. I hope I was able to end the story well. (Critiques and comments are always welcome!)_

_I humbly thank you guys for reviewing and supporting me on this fiction. Truly, you guys are my source of energy and motivation! *bear hugs all my viewers and reviewers one by one*_

_I'm wondering to write a sequel to this one, but only if the idea has supporters._


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